fR^'UlAHK-niDAWN 


- 

*^                               PRINCETON,    N.  J.           •     -              "^^ 

Purchased  by  the  Hammill  Missionary  Fund., 

BV    3680    .F6    C3    1890 

I  , 

Vernon,    R. , 

1 

James   Calvert 

/ 

JAMES  CALVERT; 


OR, 


Jfrom  S)arU  to  IDawit  in  Jfiji. 


BY 

R.  VERNON. 


CAMfJ.BAL     rORl', 
AND  SPOON. 


: :  jflcm ino  IT).  IRevell  : : 


New  York: 
12  bible  house,  astor  place. 


Chicago: 
148  and  150  madison  street. 


jpublisbcr  of  EvamjcUcal  literature 


ERRATA. 

Page  143,  line  18  from  top,  for  2,610 
scholars  read  2,610  school  teachers,  42,807 
scholars. 


once     so    far    removed    from 
Great   Britain,  not   only  by    dis- 
tance,   but    also     by  the    vicious 
character  of  its  inhabitants,  who  thought  it 
policy  to  kill  and  eat  any  foreigner  who  might  land 
on  their  shores,  has  now  become  a  British  colony. 

The  civilisation  of  the  nation  without  Christianity 
could  never  have  been  attained,  but  when  the  heart 
was  changed  the  life  and  customs  of  these  benighted 
people  became  changed  also. 

After  Christianity  had  made  it  possible  for  white 
traders  to  settle  upon  the  Fijian  Islands,  much 
trouble  and  bloodshed  were  caused  by  the  wars  they 
fostered.  As  Thakombau  expressed  it,  "  The  whites 
who  have  come  to  Fiji  are  a  bad  lot.  They  are 
mere  stalkers  on  the  beach.  The  wars  here  have 
been  far  more  the  result  of  interference  of  intruders 
than  the  fault  of  the  inhabitants.  Of  one  thing  I 
am  assured,  that  if  we  do  not  cede  Fiji,  the  white 
stalkers  on  the  beach,  the  cormorants,  will  open  their 
maws  and  swallow  us.     By  annexation  the  two  races, 


6  PRE  FA  CE. 

white  and  black,  will  be  bouud  together,  and  it  will 
be  impossible  to  sever  them.  The  interlacing  has 
come.  Fijians,  as  a  nation,  are  of  an  unstable  cha- 
racter, and  a  white  man  who  wishes  to  get  any- 
thing out  of  a  Fijian,  if  he  does  not  succeed  in  his 
object  to-day,  will  try  again  to-morrow,  until  the 
Fijian  is  either  wearied  out  or  over-persuaded,  and 
gives  in.  But  law  will  bind  us  together,  and  the 
stronger  nation  will  lend  stability  to  the  weaker." 

The  old  king  proved  to  be  right  in  his  estimate 
of  the  benefits  of  annexation  to  the  natives.  Greater 
areas  soon  became  cultivated,  and  the  towns  enlarged  ; 
good  new  houses  were  built,  while  the  cheerful  and 
healthy-looking  population  told  of  the  prosperous 
and  contented  state  of  the  country. 

The  life  and  work  of  the  Rev.  James  Calvert  in 
Fiji,  and  the  spread  of  Christianity  in  those  islands, 
should  supply  a  powerful  and  convincing  argument 
against  those  who  maintain  that  Christian  missions 
are  a  failure,  and  that  the  heathen  are  incapable  of 
receiving  the  Gospel.  It  should  also  inspire  hope, 
and  afford  encouragement  to  those  who  are  giving, 
working,  and  praying  for  the  extension  of  Christ's 
kingdom   in   foreign   lands. 

What  has  been  accomplished  in  Fiji  may  and 
will  be  accomplished  in  the  dark  places  of  the  vast 
empires  of  China  and  India,  and  in  other  heathen 
lands.  May  God  give  us  more  of  such  men  as 
James  Calvert,  men  who  shall  go  forth  filled  with 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  with  power  to  witness  for 
Christ,  until  He  shall  have  the  heathen  for  His 
inheritance,  and  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for 
His  possession. 

For  many  of    the  facts  recorded  in  these  pages 


PREFA  CE. 


7 


the  author  is  indebted  to  "  Fiji  and  the  Fijians,"  by 
the  Revs.  T.  Williams  and  James  Calvert ;  to  "  At 
Home  in  Fiji,"  by  Miss  C.  F.  Gordon-Cumming; 
to  the  "  Memoir  of  Mary  Calvert,"  and  to  "  A  Flower 
of  Fiji,"  by  the  Rev.  G.  Stringer  Rowe.  To  the 
authors  of  these  works  grateful  acknowledgments 
are  tendered. 

The  author  would  also  like  to  acknowledge  great 
obligations  to  the  Rev.  James  Calvert,  for  the  kind 
courtesy  and  generous  help  he  has  afforded  during 
the  preparation  of  this  book.  Mr.  Calvert  is  one 
whom  to  know  is  to  reverence  and  to  love.  His 
firm,  resolute  character  is  beautifully  blended  with  a 
genial  and  affectionate  disposition,  and  in  his  happy 
and  cheerful  countenance  can  be  seen  the  evident 
satisfaction  of  one  who  has  the  inward  consciousness 
that  his  days  have  been  well  spent. 


'7t'^'*^^J-£^  ^  l^^Ci^^tAt'i/tT  U*   /»*^  ^^  ^^ 

i/  /h.At^  4i>**  4-*wir  ^^iV'**-*-  ^^-pxtM^C- 
L-ft'i.^^fii  6-1.  M,.c-pi^. 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   I. 

PAGE 

FIJI    THEN   AND   NOW II 

CHAPTER   II. 

PIONEERS   IN    FIJI  .  .  .  .  .  .  -44 

CHAPTER  III. 

EARLY   DAYS   AND   MARRIAGE 48 

CHAPTER   IV. 

AT   WORK    IN    LAKEMliA         .  .  .  .  •  •  -56 

CHAPTER  V. 

CHRISTIANITY   AT   ONO 78 


lO 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

LABOURS  AT   VIWA  AND   BAU      . 


PAGE 
91 


CHAPTER   VII. 

SUJ^SEQUENT   LABOURS 


129 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


CONCLUSION 


151 


JAMES    CALVERT. 


CHAPTER   I. 


FIJI    THEN    AND    NOW. 
"  His  blood  can  make  the  foulest  clean/' 

THE  history  of  Christian  Missions  to  Fiji,  with 
which  the  life  of  James  Calvert  is  identified, 
is  replete  with  thrilling  stories  of  the  wonder- 
ful triumphs  of  the  Gospel.  No  missionary  has  been 
called  to  labour  among  a  more  degraded  people,  or 
under  more  untoward  circumstances,  and  few,  if  any, 
have  been  permitted  to  see  such  a  glorious  reforma- 
tion, in  so  short  a  time,  as  the  result  of  their  labours. 
The  Fijian  group  includes  some  two  hundred  and 
twenty  islands,  situated  in  the  South  Pacific  Ocean, 
1,760  miles  north-east  of  Sydney,  and  1,175  miles 
north  of  Auckland.  Of  these  islands,  eighty  are 
inhabited ;  the  rest  are  very  small,  and  some  of  them 
are  visible  only  at  low  tide.  The  coral  formation 
of  these  regions  is  a  very  interesting  feature.  Most 
of  the  islands  are  surrounded  by  a  coral  reef,  which 


JAMES   CALVERT. 


lies  some  distance  from  the  mainland.  This  is  a 
great  advantage  to  the  inhabitants,  as  it  furnishes 
a  lagoon  of  calm  water,  which  is  as  safe  for  a  small 
craft  as  an  inland  lake,  shut  off  as  it  is  by  the  reef 
from  the  tempestuous  sea  outside. 

The  coral  insect  cannot  live  within  the  influences 
of  fresh  water,  hence  a  break  is  found  in  the  reef  at 
the  mouth  of  any  river,  which  secures  an  entrance 
to  the  lagoon.  Some  of  these  openings  are  wide 
enough  to  admit  large  vessels,  while  others  are  very 
narrow,  and  most  careful  steering 
is  necessary  in  order  to  enter  safely. 
These  islands  exhibit  the  same 
wonderful  beauty  as  is  possessed 
by  all  the  coral  islands  of  the 
South  Seas.  Being  of  volcanic 
origin,  the  Fijian  group  shows  the 
usual  wild  and  fantastic  irregu- 
larities :  mountains  rising  in  air, 
with  fretted  summits;  deep  valleys, 
covered  thickly  with  tropical  foli- 
age ;  and  elsewhere  a  broad  expanse 
of  shore,  upon  which  the  sea  foam 
runs  up  to  the  fringe  of  cocoa-nut  trees.  It  would 
seem  that  many  centuries  must  have  passed  since  the 
first  convulsion  of  nature  formed  these  islands  ;  for 
although  occasionally  shocks  of  earthquake  are  felt, 
and  in  different  parts  hot  or  boiling  springs  exist, 
yet  there  is  no  evidence  that  the  extinct  craters  have 
been  active  within  historic  times. 

The  aspects  of  the  loveliness  of  these  islands  are  so 
well  described  by  Miss  Gordon-Cumming,  in  her  "  At 
Home  in  Fiji,"  that  we  cannot  refrain  from  a  quota- 
tion here  :  "  The  rich  blue  of  the  harbour  [Levuka] 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW. 


13 


is    separated 
from    the    pur- 
plish indigo  of  the 
<^-    great   ocean    by    a 
submarine  rainbow 
of  indescribable 
loveliness.       This     is 
caused    by  the   coral 
reef,   which    produces 
a  gleaming  ray  as  if 
from  a  hidden  prism. 
The  patches  of  coral, 
seaweed,    and    some- 
times  white    sand, 
lying       at      irregular 
depths,     beneath      a 
shallow    covering     of 
the    most    crystalline 
emerald-green  water,  produce  every  shade  of  aqua- 
marine, mauve,  sienna,  and  orange,  all  marvellously 


14  JAMES  CALVERT. 

blended.  The  shades  are  continually  varying  with 
the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  tide,  which  at  high  water 
covers  the  reef  to  the  depth  of  several  feet,  while 
at  low  tide  patches  here  and  there  stand  high  and 
dry,  or  are  covered  by  a  ^&\v  inches  of  water  ; 
treacherous  ground,  however,  on  which  to  land,  as 
the  sharp  coral  spikes  break  under  the  feet,  cutting 
the  thickest  leather,  and  perhaps  landing  you  in  a 
hole  several  feet  in  depth,  with  still  sharper  coral 
down  below.  The  highest  edge  of  the  reef  lies 
towards  the  ocean,  and  a  line  of  dazzling  white  surf 
marks  where  the  great  green  breakers  wage  their 
ceaseless  warfare  on  the  barrier ;  but  the  passage 
through  the  reef  is  plainly  marked  by  a  break  in  the 
white  line,  and  a  broad  roadway  of  deep  blue  con- 
necting the  inner  waters  with  the  great  deep  ;  and 
this,  again,  passes  in  gradual  gradations  of  colour,  from 
the  intense  blue  of  the  harbour  to  the  glittering  green 
of  the  shallow  water  on  the  inner  side  of  the  reef. 

"  Altogether  it  is  most  fascinating.  The  scene  is 
loveliest  at  noon,  when  the  sun  is  right  overhead, 
and  lights  up  the  colours  beneath  the  water  on  the 
corai  caves." 

These  reefs,  which  surround  many  of  the  islands, 
make  navigation  very  dangerous  and  difficult  ;  yet  in 
some  parts,  as  is  the  case  with  Ovalau  Island,  the 
reef  forms  a  ready-made  port,  capable  of  providing 
shelter  for  hundreds  of  ships,  the  calm  of  whose 
waters  contrasts  strangely  with  the  stormy  sea  outside 
this  natural  breakwater. 
/  The  principal  islands  of  the  archipelago  are  Vanua 
Levu,  or  Great  Land — which  is  one  hundred  miles 
long,  by  twenty-five  wide — and  Na  Viti  Levu,  t/ie 
Great  Fiji,  which   is   ninety  miles   from  east  to  west, 


FTJT  THEN  AND  NOW.  15 

and  fifty  from  north  to  south.  The  population  of 
the  latter  is  over  50,000,  and  of  the  former  31,000. 
Besides  these,  there  are  several  noteworthy  islands  to/ 
be  mentioned  in  the  following  narrative,  which  may 
now  be  named  Taviuni  (otherwise  Somosomo),  Kan- 
davu,  Bau,  Lakemba,  Vanua  Balavu,  and  Ovalau. 

The  Fijian,  even  in  his  cannibal  state,  was  superior 
in  many  respects  to  most  of  the  inhabitants  of  Poly- 
nesia ;  his  skill  in  the  manufacture  of  native  cloth, 
pottery,  wigs,  etc.,  being  quite  remarkable,  while  his 
method  of  house-building  was  second  to  none  of  his 
neighbours. 

Among  these  useful  industries,  the  skill  shown  by 
the  natives  in  the  manufacture  of  pottery,  and  their 
mode  of  operation,  are  very  interesting,  especially  as 
the  use  of  the  potter's  wheel  was  entirely  unknown. 
Where  they  learned  the  art  is  a  question  of  doubt, 
as  it  is  not  known  in  other  parts  of  Polynesia,  and 
only  very  coarse,  rough  specimens  are  made  in  Mela- 
nesia. The  Fijians  say  that  their  ancestors  learned 
from  the  mason  bee ;  and  this  seems  very  probable, 
as  the  common  cooking  and  water  vessels  in  use  in 
every  Fijian  home  greatly  resemble  the  tiny  clay 
ne.sts  made  by  these  clever  little  creatures.  These 
nests  are  found  built  in  every  available  corner,  and  are 
of  a  round  or  oblong  shape,  having  an  opening  on 
one  side  which  finishes  in  a  narrow  neck  or  passage, 
with  a  turned-back  lip.  The  blue  clay  used  by  the 
mason  bee  is  identical  with  that  employed  by  the 
potter,  who  mixes  sand  with  it  in  order  to  add 
strength  to  his  ware.  From  this  primitive  idea  the 
Fijian  women  have  gone  on  producing  other  varieties, 
in  form  mostly  imitating  some  object  in  nature  with 
which  they  are  familiar.      A  very  favourite  pattern  is 


1 6  JAMES  CALVERT, 

one  composed  of  a  cluster  of  three  or  four  globes, 
about  the  size  of  an  orange,  all  joined  together,  and 
each  having  a  hollow  tube  leading  from  one  aperture 
at  the  top,  by  which  the  vessels  are  filled.  The 
ordinary  cooking  and  waterpots  are  much  alike  in 
form  ;  but  in  decorating  these,  as  well  as  other  more 
fancy  articles,  each  potter  follows  her  own  taste  ;  and 
so  great  is  their  love  of  variety,  that  it  is  very 
seldom  two  pieces  are  produced  exactly  alike.  In- 
deed, when  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  obtain 
duplicates,  the  result  has  been  most  unsatisfactory. 
It  is  wonderful  with  what  skill  and  perfect  symmetry 
these  women  can  model  large  pots,  some  of  them 
many  feet  in  diameter,  the  work  being  performed 
wholly  by  hand. 

The  operation  is  a  very  simple  yet  ingenious  one. 
After  the  clay  has  been  mixed  with  fine  sand,  it  is 
rolled  out  in  long  round  pieces  like  sausages  ;  these 
are  then  arranged  in  circles  one  above  another,  so  as 
to  form  the  base  of  a  large  round  pot.  When  this 
is  partly  moulded  into  shape,  the  potter  takes  a 
smooth  stone,  which  she  holds  inside  the  pot  with 
her  left  hand,  while  in  the  other  she  takes  a  flat 
piece  of  wood,  with  which  she  beats  and  moistens 
the  clay  till  the  surface  is  smooth.  Other  coils  are 
now  built  up  round  the  top,  which  get  gradually 
smaller  towards  the  neck  of  the  vessel,  when  the 
rim  is  formed.  The  clay  is  again  beaten  till  the 
surface  is  perfectly  smooth  inside  and  out.  After 
this  modelling  process  is  complete,  the  vessels  arc 
allowed  to  stand  in  the  house  for  six  or  eight  days, 
when  they  are  taken  to  some  sheltered  nook  to  be 
baked.  Here  a  pile  of  wood  is  prepared- on  which 
the  pots   are  placed,  and   dry  grass   and   light  wood 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW.  17 

is  piled  over  them ;  the  pile  is  next  set  on  fire,  and 
kept  burning  for  half  an  hour.  While  still  hot,  the 
commoner  pots  are  well  rubbed  with  a  dark  red  dye 
made  from  mangrove  bark,  which  gives  a  slight 
glaze  as  well  as  colour  to  the  pot.  Other  more 
ornamental  articles  of  pottery  are  twice  baked  and 
glazed  with  resin.  These  are  also  marked  in 
elaborate  patterns  with  a  small  sharp-pointed  stick  ; 
while  others  have  raised  patterns  something  like 
clusters  of  grapes  worked  upon  them. 

When  we  take  into  account  the  coarseness  of  the 
clay,  and  the  rudimentary  character  of  the  tools 
used,  as  well  as  the  savage,  uncivilized  nature  of  the 


people,  we  cannot  but  be  surprised  at  the  artistic 
skill  they  exhibit,  and  the  immense  variety  of  forms 
they  are  able  to  produce. 

Again,  in  the  manufacture  of  native  cloth  {masi) 
the  Fijian  shows  great  ingenuity  and  skill.  The 
material  used  for  this  purpose  is  the  bark  of  the 
malo  tree,  which  is  taken  off  in  long  strips,  and 
soaked  in  water  in  order  to  loosen  the  outer  skin. 
This  skin  is  afterwards  scraped  off  with  a  large  shell, 
when  the  masi  is  ready  for  the  beating  process. 
This  is  done  on  a  flattened  log.  Two  pieces  of  masi 
are  beaten  together  in  order  to  add  strength,  the 
gluten  contained  in  the  fibre  being  sufficient  to 
unite  them  securely.  In  this  way  a  strip  two  inches 
wide  can  be  beaten  out  to  a  foot  and  a  half  wide. 


i8  JAMES   CALVERT. 

The  strips  thus  beaten  out  are  united  by  neat  joints, 
which  are  made  by  means  of  a  starch  prepared  from 
taro  or  arrowroot.  In  this  manner  these  persevering 
people  produce  cloth  many  yards  in  length.  One 
piece,  intended  for  a  king's  dress  to  be  worn  on  a 
special  occasion,  was  measured  by  a  missionary,  and 
was  found  to  be  one  hundred  and  eighty  yards  long. 
The  "  widths  "  are  also  joined  to  form  large  pieces 
fifteen  to  thirty  feet  square,  used  chiefly  for  mosquito 
curtains — a  luxury  enjoyed  by  the  Fijian,  but  of 
which  most  of  his  neighbours  are  unpossessed. 

Very  beautiful,  artistic  patterns  are  arranged  and 
set  into  the  cloth  by  means  of  red  and  black  dyes, 
and  in  this  art  the  Fijian  lady  takes  great  pride. 
Elaborate  patterns  are  designed  by  the  worker,  and 
cut  out  in  a  heated  banana  leaf  The  leaf  is  then 
placed  on  the  material  which  is  to  be  dyed.  Next, 
taking  a  piece  of  cloth  dipped  in  the  dye,  the  worker 
rubs  it  firmly  over  the  stencil,  and  thus  prints  the 
pattern  she  has  cut  out  in  the  leaf.  The  black  dye 
used  is  made  from  vegetable  charcoal  mixed  with 
water,  while  the  red  is  a  mixture  of  red  earth  and 
the  sap  of  the  silvery-leaved  croton  tree. 

The  women's  dress  (Jihi)  is  made  from  the  fibre 
of  a  wild  root.  It  consists  of  a  broad  band  of  braid- 
work,  beautifully  variegated  with  a  long  grass  fringe 
below. 

Mat-making  is  also  very  successfully  carried  on  in 
Fiji.  The  Fijian  mats  vary  in  design  and  construc- 
tion in  different  districts,  and  are  used  for  floors, 
for  sails  of  canoes,  for  sleeping  upon,  and  also  for 
nursing  purposes.  In  making  sails  from  these  mats 
a  needle  was  used  made  from  a  human  shin  bone. 
These  bones  were  much  prized,  and  were  generally 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW.  ig 

claimed  by  the  chief  of  the  tribe  who  had  secured  a 
victim. 

The  mats  are  made  from  the  pandanus  leaf, 
plaited  with  a  strong  rush  which  abounds  in  swampy- 
districts.  The  borders  are  very  ornamental,  being 
worked  in  various  patterns,  into  which  parrots'  feathers 
of  brilliant  colours  are  sometimes  introduced. 

In  basket-making,  too,  the  Fijian  is  an  adept. 
One  of  the  missionaries  speaks  of  these  baskets  as 
being  "  strong,  handsome,  and  useful,  beyond  any  I 
have  seen  at  home  or  abroad."  Beautiful  carving  is 
also  executed  by  Fijians.  Clubs  and  spears  are 
made  out  of  a  very  hard  wood,  and  carved  and  inlaid 
with  ivory  or  human  teeth,  as  are  also  yanggona 
bowls  and  the  cannibal  forks.  In  fact,  these  savage 
Fijians  showed  great  tact  in  adapting  themselves  to 
their  circumstances,  readily  finding  in  nature  all 
they  needed  for  comfort  or  convenience.  Nor  did 
these  ingenious  people  manufacture  for  themselves 
alone,  for  the  Tongans  were  quite  dependent  on 
them  for  canoes,  spars,  sail-mats,  pottery,  and  mos- 
quito curtains. 

The  art  of  hairdressing  and  wig-making  in  Fiji 
excited  much  amazement,  the  hairdresser  having 
displayed  equal  skill  with  the  potter  and  cloth-worker 
in  the  arts  they  profess.  The  custom  of  dressing  the 
hair,  however,  was  so  mixed  up  with  war  and  canni- 
balism, that  the  people,  as  they  became  Christians, 
to  a  very  great  extent  gave  it  up. 

Formerly  every  chief  had  his  own  hairdresser, 
who  spent  many  hours  each  day  in  adorning 
his  master's  head.  The  great  aim  was  to  extend 
the  hair  to  as  large  a  mass  as  possible.  Some- 
times these  successful  workmen  have  been  known  to 


20 


JAMES   CALVERT. 


make  the  hair  stand  out  till  it  reached  a  circum- 
ference of  five  feet,  the  great  mass  being  composed 
of  twists  and  curls  and  tufts,  variously  coloured, — ^jet- 
black,  blue-black,  ashy-white,  and  several  shades  of  red 
being  the  favourite  colours  ;  and  two  or  more  of  these 
shades  were  often  found  on  the  same  head.  So  per- 
fectly are  these  designs  carried  out,  that  the  hair  will 
retain  its  position,  even  when  projecting  six  or  eight 
inches  from  the  head,  the  sides  and   angles  being  so 


..f<#;ilS©S-~,. 


TYPES   OF   HEAD-DRESS. 


regular  as  to  give  the  appearance  of  being  carved 
out  of  a  solid  substance,  rather  than  composed  of 
single  hairs.  A  Fijian  pillow  is  anything  but  com- 
fortable. It  is  formed  of  a  bar  of  wood  supported 
on  two  claw  feet.  The  neck  rests  on  the  bar,  and 
thus  the  elaborately  dressed  hair  is  not  disarranged. 

p  The  cannibalism  of  Fiji  was  not  only  the  outburst 
'of  passion  or  enmity,  but  was  an  institution  mixed  up 

1  with  every-day  life.  The  practice  did  not  arise  from 
scarcity  of  food  ;  for  even  when  every  other  kind  of 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW.  21 

diet  abounded  human  bodies  {bokola)  were  looked  upon 
as  a  delicacy,  and  preferred  by  some  before  all  other 
food.  The  higher  the  rank  the  more  this  revolting 
custom  was  indulged  in  ;  and  many  of  the  chiefs  so 
gloried  in  the  number  of  human  bodies  they  had 
eaten  as  to  keep  a  register  by  making  a  line  of 
stones,  one  stone  being  placed  for  each  body  eaten. 

The  stones  thus  placed  by  two  chiefs,  Wangka 
Levu  and  Ra  Undre  Undre,  were  counted  by  a  native 
teacher,  and  found  to  number  nearly  nine  hundred. 
Another  member  of  the  same  family  registered  forty- 
eight  previous  to  his  becoming  a  Christian.  As  many 
as  fifty  bodies  have  been  cooked  for  one  feast  when 
visitors  were  to  be  entertained.  Among  these  would 
be  found  those  of  men  and  women  of  all  ages,  and 
even  of  little  children.  Nor  did  the  cruelty  of  these 
people  stop  here,  for  the  victims  of  their  revenge 
were  sometimes  frightfully  tortured,  and  even  cut  up 
alive  before  being  placed  in  the  ovens. 

These  ovens  were  deep  holes  or  pits  dug  from  four 
to  six  feet  deep,  and  when  required  for  a  feast-day 
they  sometimes  reached  fifty  feet  in  circumference. 
This  hole,  or  oven,  was  first  filled  with  firewood,  on 
which  stones  were  placed.  As  soon  as  this  wood 
was  consumed  the  food  to  be  cooked  was  laid  on  the 
hot  stones,  some  of  which  were  also  placed  inside  the 
animals  if  they  were  to  be  cooked  whole.  Over  this 
a  thick  layer  of  leaves  was  spread,  on  which  a  coating 
of  earth  was  laid.  When  the  steam  was  seen  making 
its  way  through  this  covering  the  food  was  cooked. 

Green  baskets  were  plaited,  and  large  leaves  pre- 
pared to  receive  the  food  when  removed  from  the 
ovens,  during  which  operation  great  activity  and 
excitement   prevailed. 


22  JAMES   CALVERT. 

The  appetite  for  human  food  possessed  by  the 
Fijian  of  former  times  is  further  illustrated  by  the 
following  fact  :  — 

A  man  named  Loti,  well  known  to  Mr.  Williams, 
had  previously  killed  and  eaten  his  own  wife.  It 
occurred  thus  :  They  were  working  together  plant- 
ing taro,  when  the  husband  seemed  suddenly  to 
become  possessed  of  a  craving  for  human  food.  He 
made  his  wife  help  to  dig  an  oven,  collect  wood  for 
the  fire,  and  grass  and  leaves  for  the  covering,  also 
bamboo  to  cut  up  what  was  to  be  cooked.  When 
all  was  ready  he  coolly  seized  the  woman,  killed 
her,  dismembered  the  body,  and  then  cooked  it, 
calling  his  friends  to  join  him  in  the  feast.  She 
was  of  equal  rank  with  himself,  and  they  had  lived 
peaceably  together,  which  made  the  deed  appear 
the  more  revolting. 

A  canoe,  having  on  board  the  bodies  of  enemies 
intended  for  the  ovens,  would  sound  the  lali  (death 
drum)  before  reaching  the  shore,  to  announce  the 
event ;  whereupon  the  shore  was  soon  crowded  with 
those  who  hoped  to  join  in  the  feast,  dancing  and 
shouting  lustily.  On  gaining  the  shore,  the  bodies 
were  dragged  to  the  town,  the  warriors  going  before, 
dancing  and  throwing  their  clubs  in  the  air  and 
firing  muskets,  at  the  same  time  boasting  to  the 
inhabitants  of  their  ability  to  defend  them  from  their 
enemies.  When  they  reached  the  town  each  body 
was  laid  down  before  the  chief,  and  then  presented  to 
the  war-god  by  the  priest,  and  the  head  was  dashed 
against  a  stone  outside  the  temple.  The  body  was 
then  taken  back  to  the  shore,  and  after  being  washed 
in  the  sea,  the  appointed  carver  commenced  to  dis- 
member it  limb  by  limb.     The  limbs  were  wrapped 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW.  23 

in  leaves  and  placed  in  the  oven,  which  was  being 
prepared  while  the  ceremony  was  going  on. 

The  reckless  disregard  for  human  life  which  was 
one   of   the    prevailing  characteristics    in    Fiji    was 
further  evidenced    by   the  sight   which   an   English- 
man,   named    Jackson,    was    compelled     to    witness 
while    detained   on   one   of   the   islands    more    than 
thirty    years    ago.      It     was     a    sacrifice    to    earth- 
spirits.     A   new  house  was   to  be   built   for  one  of 
the   chiefs,  and   a  great  merry-making  and    playing 
of  tomtoms  was  going  on.      Deep  holes  were   dug 
in  the  foundation  to  receive  the  main   posts  of  the 
house,    and    into    these    holes    wretched    men    were 
compelled  to  stand  with   their  arms  clasped  round 
the   post.      The    earth   was  then   filled    in,  and   thus 
the  men  were  buried  alive.      It  was  supposed  that 
if  these   men    sacrificed  their  lives   endeavouring  to 
hold  the  posts  of  their  superior's  house  in  their  right 
position,    the    virtue    of    the    sacrifice    would    insti- 
gate the  gods  to  uphold  the  house  after  they  were 
dead,  and    that   they  were   honoured    in   being  con- 
sidered adequate  to  such  a  noble  task.      A  scarcely 
less  horrible  cruelty  was  practised  at  the  launching 
of  a  war-canoe,  when  human  beings  were  made  to 
act  as  rollers,  upon  which  the  canoe  made  its  passage 
to  the  sea,   crushing  the  human  rollers   in   its   pro- 
gress.     Many  were   sometimes   killed   in    this   cruel 
manner  ;  while   another    fearful    scene  of  bloodshed 
took  place  before  the  canoe  was   ready  to  spread  its 
sails  and  start  for  some  distant  island,  where,  if  suc- 
cessful, a  whole  village  would  be  devastated,  and  the 
inhabitants  taken  to  supply  food  for  a  single  festival,   y 

All  through  Fiji  woman  was  fearfully  degraded. 
In  some  of  the  islands  she  was  made  the  beast  of 


24  JAMES   CALVERT. 

burden,  and  every  kind  of  heavy  work  was  expected 
from  her,  while  her  only  food  was  that  left  by  her 
husband.  Girls  were  betrothed  at  a  very  early  age, 
and  consequently  the  most  unsuitable  matches  were 
made,  girls  in  their  teens  becoming  the  wives  of  old 
men.  Very  seldom  was  there  any  affection  between 
man  and  wife,  and  the  women  envied  their  more 
fortunate  sisters  who  were  allowed  to  marry  "  the 
man  to  whom  their  spirit  flew." 

The  duties  of  a  wife  are  very  numerous.  Besides 
attending  to  the  children,  she  is  expected  to  fetch 
the  fresh  and  salt  water,  collect  fuel,  and  also  attend 
to  the  boiled  food,  the  ovens  always  being  in 
charge  of  the  men.  It  is  mostly  the  women  who 
do  the  fishing,  a  work  in  which  they  take  great 
delight.  At  low  tide  they  swim  out  to  the  reef, 
which  abounds  in  crabs  and  other  fish,  some  of 
which  are  of  radiant  colours,  such  as  pale  blue,  dark 
blue,  bright  green,  and  marked  with  bands  of  black- 
and-white.  There  is  also  a  most  exquisite  gold-fish 
with  a  sky-blue  collar.  This  fishing  is  attended 
with  great  danger,  both  from  the  presence  of  sharks, 
and  also  from  fish  whose  bite  is  poisonous. 

Not  only  did  the  Fijian  women  suffer  from  the 
cruelty  of  their  husbands,  but  very  often  the  women 
treated  each  other  badly.  A  missionary's  wife  once 
asked  a  native  woman  how  it  was  that  some  of  the 
women  were  without  noses.  She  replied,  "  It  comes 
out  of  the  plurality  of  wives  ;  jealousy  causes  hatred, 
and  then  the  stronger  tries  to  cut  or  bite  off  the 
nose  of  the  one  she  hates." 

Infanticide  was  a  very  common  occurrence,  espe- 
cially among  feeble  children,  who  were  never  allowed 
to  live.      In  other  cases,  where  healthy  babies  were 


A    FIJIAN    BOY. 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW.  27 

put  to  death,  the  practice  mostly  arose  from  some 
whim  of  the  mother — expediency,  anger,  or  indo- 
lence— and  not  from  fear,  superstition,  or  reh"gious 
motive,  as  is  the  case  with  the   Hindu   mother.       ^^ 

The  cruelty  of  the  Fijian  race  was  further  shown 
by  their  treatment  of  the  sick.  If  the  sufferers  were 
of  high  rank  every  care  was  taken  of  them,  and  large 
offerings  were  made  to  the  priests  in  order  to  pro- 
pitiate the  gods,  whose  anger  was  supposed  to  be  the 
cause  of  the  sickness.  But  in  cases  of  illness  among 
the  common  people  the  patience  of  their  friends  was 
soon  exhausted,  and  invalids  were  left  to  perish,  or 
were  more  summarily  put  out  of  the  way.  A  poor 
sick  woman,  having  been  neglected  by  her  friends, 
was  taken  under  the  missionary's  care,  though  still 
remaining  in  her  own  hut.  One  morning  his  servant 
was  taking  her  breakfast  as  usual  when  he  was  met 
by  the  woman's  friends,  who  were  returning  from 
her  burial.  On  reaching  home,  he  told  his  master 
how,  on  the  previous  day,  he  had  found  an  old 
woman  in  the  house,  who  said,  "  I  have  come  to  see 
my  friend,  and  to  inquire  whether  she  is  ready  to 
be  strangled,  but  as  she  is  still  strong  we  shall  not 
strangle  her  yet."  However,  they  altered  their  minds 
after  the  servant  left,  and  took  the  woman's  life 
without  further  ado.  I 

Another  instance,  still  more  dreadful,  is  that  of  a 
young  girl  who  was  buried  alive  at  the  command  of 
a  chief's  son.  She  had  been  in  delicate  health  for 
some  time,  and  the  young  man  had  made  up  his 
mind  that  she  could  not  or  should  not  recover. 
Accordingly  a  grave  was  dug  for  her  just  outside  the 
house,  and  being  decoyed  to  the  spot,  she  was  seized 
and  thrown  in.     In  horror  she  vainly  called  out,  "  Do 


28  JAMES  CALVERT. 

not  bury  me  ;  I  am  quite  well  now."  No  heed  was 
taken,  and  she  was  held  down  while  the  soil  was 
thrown  in  upon  her  till  her  cries  were  heard  no  more. 

The  death  of  any  great  person  was  always  fol- 
lowed by  the  strangling  of  his  wives,  chief  servant, 
and  in  some  cases  of  his  mother.  These  were  spoken 
of  as  "  grass  "  for  lining  the  chief's  grave.  They 
were  laid  on  a  layer  of  mats  in  the  bottom  of  the 
grave,  and  the  chief  was  then  laid  on  them.  The 
laying  out  of  a  body  was  generally  begun  before  the 
person  was  actually  dead,  and  consisted  of  removing 
all  the  old  clothes  which  had  been  used  by  the  sick 
man.  He  was  then  washed  and  oiled,  the  upper 
part  of  his  body  being  painted  black,  to  denote  that 
he  was  a  warrior.  When  death  really  took  place  he 
was  armed  with  a  newly  oiled  club  to  protect  him- 
self on  his  way  to  the  spirit  world,  while  in  his  hand 
whales'  teeth  were  placed  as  an  offering  to  the  gods, 
A  clean  head-dress  was  put  on,  a  new  masi  and  sheet 
were  thrown  over  him,  and  in  many  cases  head  orna- 
ments used  to  adorn  the  arms  and  forehead.  Then 
followed  the  lolokn,  or  strangling  of  friends,  the 
usual  number  being  two  women,  or  a  woman  and  a 
man  ;  but  this  number  was  often  exceeded,  in  order 
to  show  greater  respect  and  honour  to  the  deceased. 

The  women  thus  strangled  were  oiled,  dressed  in 
a  new  liku,  and  after  their  hair  had  been  adorned, 
vermilion  or  turmeric  powder  was  spread  over  their 
faces  and  breasts.  They  were  then  placed  beside 
the  dead  chief,  who  was  now  considered  ready  to  be 
viewed  and  wailed  over  by  his  friends.  It  is  strange 
to  find  that  the  women  thus  appointed  to  be  strangled 
manifested  no  desire  to  escape  from  their  fate  ;  in- 
deed, cases  have  come  under  the  missionaries'  notice 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW.  29 

where  the  women  would  not  accept  deliverance.  This 
is  accounted  for  partly  by  the  fact  that  life  was 
utterly  disregarded  all  through  Fiji,  and  also  that 
their  lives  would  have  been  made  unbearable  by 
the  subsequent  treatment  of  their  friends,  A  native 
teacher  once  begged  the  life  of  a  woman.  She  wished 
to  live,  but  said,  "Our  case  is  one  to  cause  pity;  but 
we  dare  not  live  ;  our  friends  dare  not  save  us." 

The  day  after  the  funeral  feasting  took  place,  and 
continued  for  ten  or  twenty  days.  The  men  showed 
their  mourning  by  making  themselves  "  bald  for  the 
dead,"  when  the  hair,  in  which  they  take  such  pride, 
was  cut  off,  and  in  some  cases  the  whiskers  and  beard 
as  well.  The  women  burned  their  bodies,  and  were 
ordered  to  have  a  joint  cut  off  from  the  little  finger. 
This  was  done  with  a  sharp  shell,  and  the  severed  joint 
was  inserted  in  a  slit  reed,  and  placed  on  the  eaves  of 
the  chief's  house.  On  the  next  occasion  of  mourning 
the  second  joint  was  sacrificed.  The  little  finger  on 
the  other  hand  supplied  a  third  and  fourth  proof  of 
sorrow,  and  after  that  the  mutilated  stump  was  rubbed 
on  rough  stones  till  it  bled.  About  the  tenth  day 
after  the  funeral  the  women  took  cords,  switches,  and 
whips,  and  laid  them  about  any  men  who  came  in 
their  way,  the  highest  chiefs  alone  being  exempt. 
No  violence  was  used  towards  the  women  in  retalia- 
tion, it  being  the  custom  for  all  to  submit  to  these 
strange  tokens  of  grief  on  this  day. 

The  religion  of  Fiji  consisted  of  a  belief  in  an 
invisible  superhuman  Power,  which  ruled  and  con- 
trolled all  earthly  affairs.  The  gods  representing 
this  Power  were  supposed  to  communicate  their  will 
to  the  priests,  who  were  consulted  on  all  important 
occasions — as,  for  instance,  before  going  to  war,  or  in 


30  JAMES  CALVERT. 

cases  of  sickness  in  high  families.  The  god  most 
generally  known  was  Ndengei.  Most  chiefs  had  a 
god  of  their  own,  in  whom  they  placed  special  trust, 
and  who  was  supposed  to  follow  them  wherever  they 
went.  In  every  village  of  any  size  a  bure,  or  temple, 
was  found.  These  were  quite  important  buildings, 
erected  on  a  raised  foundation,  and  profusely  deco- 
rated with  sinnet-work  and  shells.  The  temple, 
however,  served  other  than  religious  purposes,  form- 
ing, as  it  did,  a  sort  of  village  council-chamber.  It 
was  also  used  as  a  place  in  which  to  entertain 
strangers,  as  well  as  for  a  sleeping-place  for  the 
head  men  of  the  village.  No  regular  worship  was 
observed,  and  very  often  the  temple  was  allowed  to 
decay  until  the  chief  wanted  to  make  some  request 
to  the  gods,  when  he  would  restore  the  temple,  and 
present  large  quantities  of  food  and  whales'  teeth. 
Fear  seemed  to  be  the  only  motive  for  any  religious 
observance,  and  this  the  priests  made  the  most  of. 
The  only  sacred  spot  in  the  temple  was  a  small  space 
marked  off  by  a  long  piece  of  native  cloth  let  down 
from  the  top  of  the  biirc  to  the  floor,  down  which  the 
god  was  supposed  to  pass  when  entering  the  priest. 

On  one  occasion  Mr.  Calvert  was  invited  by 
Thakombau,  King  of  Bau,  to  accompany  him  to  the 
temple,  where  he  was  about  to  make  request  for 
success  in  war.  The  priests  had  been  informed  of 
the  king's  coming,  and  were  waiting  ready  to  receive 
him.  At  this  time  the  king's  faith  had  been  some- 
what shaken  in  his  heathen  gods ;  though  he  had  not 
given  them  up,  yet  he  would  not  consent  to  large 
offerings  of  food  being  made  as  on  previous  occa- 
sions. The  king  and  Mr.  Calvert  first  visited  a 
small  temple,  where  the  priest,  who  was  awaiting  the 


FIJI  THEN  AND  NOW.  31 

king,  looked  much  surprised  to  see  the  missionary  also. 
The  king's  messenger,  who  was  seated  before  the 
priest,  offered  a  root  of  yanggona,  and  called  upon 
the  gods  for  protection  and  success.  The  priest  then 
promised  protection  to  the  king  and  his  people,  but 
would  not  vouch  for  the  destruction  of  his  enemies. 
This,  however,  did  not  satisfy  the  king,  who  said, 
"  Yes,  you  have  always  protected  us  ;  that  we  expect. 
But  now  we  require  the  destruction  of  our  enemies. 
We  have  renewed  your  fences,  and  made  special 
offerings  to  you,  and  we  now  look  to  you  for  extra 
proof  of  your  concern  for  us  by  revenging  our 
insults."  Still  the  old  man  could  not  be  persuaded 
to  promise  anything  more  than  protection,  so  they 
made  their  way  to  the  chief  temple.  When  Mr. 
Calvert  reached  the  foot  of  the  stairs  the  high-priest 
arose  and  came  towards  him,  having  a  great  length 
of  inasi  wrapped  round  him.  I>ooking  very  dignified, 
he  inquired,  "  Why  have  you  come  }  Do  you  think 
I  shall  refrain  from  making  promises  because  you 
are  here  }  "  The  missionary  spoke  in  a  friendly  tone 
to  him,  which  somewhat  soothed  him.  When  the 
company  were  seated, — Mr.  Calvert  having  an  ele- 
vated position  where  all  could  see  him, — an  old 
cannibal  chief  came  forward  carrying  a  yanggona 
root  on  his  shoulder.  He  asked  the  gods  to  destroy 
their  enemies,  describing  the  injuries  and  insults  to 
which  the  king  had  been  subjected.  It  was  not  long- 
before  the  high-priest  intimated  that  the  god  had 
descended.  The  priest  was  seized  with  the  usual 
demonstration  of  trembling,  which  increased  till  his 
whole  body  was  convulsed,  and  the  man  shivered  as 
if  suddenly  attacked  with  a  violent  fit  of  ague.  The 
arrival  of  the  god  was  then  announced,  and  all  head- 


32  JAMES  CALVERT. 

dresses  and  ornaments  worn  by  the  company  were 
at  once  thrown  off.  The  priest  now  discovered  the 
absence  of  Thakombau,  who  had  sHpped  out  into  a 
smaller  temple.  This  made  him  very  angry,  and  the 
god  cried  out,  "  Where  is  Thakombau  }  I  do  not 
see  him  !  Why  does  he  not  make  his  appearance  .-• 
And  why  has  he  brought  this  foreigner  }  His  un- 
belief leads  him  to  act  in  this  way.  But  I  have 
conquered  many  places,  and  I  shall  still  be  victorious, 
being  the  god  of  war."  The  prediction,  however, 
proved  utterly  false,  and  the  missionary  was  able  to 
show  the  king  and  people  how  useless  their  gods  were. 
Cannibalism  formed  a  part  of  Fijian  religion, 
though  not  a  very  important  one.  The  priests  re- 
presented the  gods  as  delighting  in  human  flesh, 
which  was  accordingly  exacted  from  the  people,  and 
jused  for  their  own  consumption. 

•"rom  the  short  account  we  have  given  of  the 
industries,  manners,  and  customs  of  the  Fijians,  our 
readers  will  see  that  these  people  were  clever,  in- 
genious, and  industrious,  while  at  the  same  time  they 
stood  unrivalled  for  acts  of  savage  cruelty,  and  were 
sunk  in  crimes  of  the  deepest  dye  by  the  customs 
and  practices  of  their  every-day  life,  as  well  as  by 
the  brutal  character  of  many  of  their  religious  festivals. 
Scarcely  more  than  half  a  century  ago  such  horrors  and 
atrocities  as  we  have  described  were  being  perpetrated 
daily,  when  the  people  were  literally  led  captive  by  the 
devil  at  his  will.  Surely  the  picture  of  these  savage  acts 
of  cruelty  would  be  too  fearful  to  look  upon,  were  it  not 
that  the  dreadful  gloom  of  sin  which  then  enshrouded 
these  lovely  islands  has  been  dispersed  by  the  light 
of  the  Gospel,  and  to-day  we  find  the  Fijian  clothed 
and  in  his  right  mind,  sitting  at  the  feet  of  Jesus. 


FIjr  THEN  AND  NOW. 


I}, 


Miss  Gordon-Cumming,  already  quoted,  and  to 
whom  some  of  the  awful  scenes  of  cruelty  and 
bloodshed  to  which  we  have  referred  were  described 


JOHN    HUNT. 


by  eye-witnesses,  thus  speaks  of  the  change  that  has 
taken  place  : — 

"  Now  you  may  pass  from  isle  to  isle,  certain 
everywhere  to  find  the  same  cordial  reception  by 
kindly    men    and   women.       Every    village    on    the 

3 


34  JAMES  CALVERT. 

eighty  inhabited  islands  has  built  for  itself  a  tidy- 
church,  and  a  good  house  for  its  teacher  or  native 
minister,  for  whom  the  village  also  provides  food 
and  clothing.  Can  you  realize  that  there  are  nine 
hundred  Wesleyan  churches  in  Fiji,  at  every  one  of 
which  the  frequent  services  are  crowded  by  devout 
congregations  ;  that  the  schools  are  well  attended, 
and  that  the  first  sound  which  greets  your  ear  at 
dawn,  and  the  last  at  night,  is  that  of  hymn-singing 
and  the  most  fervent  worship,  rising  from  each 
dwelling  at  the  hour  of  family  prayer  ?  " 

This  mighty  change  was  not  accomplished  without 
much  self-denying  toil,  hardship,  and  danger  on  the 
part  of  the  missionaries  and  their  wives  who  were 
engaged  in  the  work.  William  Cross,  who,  with 
David  Cargill,  was  the  first  herald  of  the  Gospel 
in  Fiji,  died  in  the  midst  of  the  work,  and  was 
buried  in  the  land  of  strangers.  A  few  years  later 
the  saintly  John  Hunt,  after  ten  years  of  devoted 
service,  died  praying,  "  Lord,  for  Christ's  sake,  bless 
Fiji  !  save  Fiji  !  Save  Thy  servants  ;  save  Thy 
people  ;  save  the  heathen  in  Fiji."  James  Calvert, 
a  sketch  of  whose  life  we  propose  to  present  to  our 
readers,  is  still  spared  to  enjoy  the  rich  reward  of 
seeing  the  fruit  of  their  labours  in  the  service  the 
Fijians  are  rendering  as  native  teachers  and  mission- 
aries, not  only  in  their  own,  but  also  in  other  lands, 
labouring  to  bring  the  heathen  to  a  knowledge  of 
that_truth  which  has  made  them  free. 

Before  proceeding  to  narrate  the  circumstances 
which  led  James  Calvert  to  Fiji,  we  may  very  briefly 
summarize  in  the  following  chapter  the  pioneering 
work  which  had  been  undertaken  before  he  reached 
these  islands. 


CHAPTER     II. 


•     PIONEERS  IN  FIJI. 

"  The  good,  the  fruitful  ground, 
Expect  not  here  nor  there. 
O'er  hill  and  dale  by  plots  'tis  found 
Go  forth,  then,  everywhere." 


THE  earliest  intercourse  with  Fiji  seems  to  have 
been  carried  on  by  the  Tongans,  who,  coming 
from  the  Friendly  Isles,  about  two  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  to  the  east  of  Fiji,  for  purposes  of 
trade,  landed  at  Lakemba,  the  chief  island  in  the 
Windward  Group.  Here  some  of  them  settled,  and 
soon  gained  property  and  influence  by  taking  part 
in  the  frequent  inter-tribal  wars,  and  by  sailing  about 
to  dependent  islands  to  demand  tribute  for  the  chief 
whose  favour  they  had  gained.  Thus,  in  course  of 
time,  several  distinct  colonies  of  Tongans  were  formed 
on  Lakemba  and  the  adjoining  islands  of  that  group. 
In  1834  the  Tongan  Church  was  blessed  with 
a  great  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  For  many 
years  previously  devoted  men   had  been   sowing  the 


36  JAMES  CALVERT. 

seed  in  tears,  amid  great  hardship  and  discourage- 
ment. At  length  the  reaping  time  came,  when 
thousands  not  only  gave  up  their  heathen  practices, 
but  showed  afterwards,  by  their  consistent  lives,  that 
they  were  truly  converted.  Among  these  was  King 
George  Tubou,  who,  with  his  wife,  sought  and  found 
Jesus  as  his  Saviour,  and  thenceforward  he  became 
as  zealous  in  the  spread  of  the  Gospel  as  he  had 
previously  been  in  the  exertion  of  his  power  as  a 
heathen  warrior. 

As  the  result  of  this  revival,  the  missionaries  and 
converts  began  to  think  and  mourn  over  the  Fijians, 
news  of  whose  horrible  deeds  of  bloodshed  and 
cruelty  were  constantly  reaching  them,  and  very 
earnestly  did  the  Tongan  Church  pray  that  God 
would  open  up  a  way  for  the  preaching  of  the 
Gospel  in  Fiji.  The  prayer  was  answered,  and 
towards  the  close  of  the  year  it  was  decided  that 
the  Revs.  W.  Cross  and  David  Cargill,  M.A,,  who  had 
left  England  under  the  auspices  of  the  Wesleyan 
Missionary  Society,  and  who  had  laboured  in  Tonga 
for  some  time,  should  go  forth  and  start  a  new 
mission  at  Lakemba.  Accordingly,  in  the  following 
October,  these  brave  men  embarked,  with  their 
families,  for  that  scene  of  labour. 

King  George  was  very  much  interested  in  the 
expedition,  and  to  further  its  object  he  sent  a  sort 
of  ambassador  with  the  missionaries,  who  took  a 
present  to  Tui  Nayau,  King  of  Lakemba.  He  was 
also  to  explain  to  this  king  how  greatly  the  Tongans 
had  been  benefited  by  the  introduction  of  Christianity, 
and  to  urge  him  to  receive  the  missionaries  well  and 
obey  their  teaching. 

Let  us  pause  here  in  our  narrative,  and  admire  the 


PIONEERS  IN  FIJI.  37 

holy  love  and  faith  which  inspired  these  courageous 
men,  as  we  remember  what  fearful  hazards  they  ran 
in  thus  attempting  to  land  among  such  a  people  as 
the  Fijians  ;  risking,  it  would  seem,  not  only  their 
own  lives,  but  also  those  of  their  wives  and  children. 
All  honour  to  the  men  and  women  who  dare  to 
face  such  fearful  odds  ! 

After  four  days'  uncomfortable  sailing  in  a  small 
schooner,  Lakemba  was  sighted,  and  shortly  after- 
wards the  missionaries  made  for  the  shore  in  a  small 
boat,  where  they  found  a  large  company  of  Tongans 
and  Fijians  assembled.  These  were  armed  with 
clubs,  and  had  theii-  bodies  blackened,  altogether 
presenting  a  most  formidable 
appearance.  Passing  through 
this  crowd,  the  missionaries 
gained  the  king's  town,  situ- 
ated some  little  distance  from 
the  shore,  and  soon  obtained 
an  audience  with  him.  The 
interview  was  a  favourable  one. 
Tui  Nayau  gave  the  mission  families  permission  to 
land,  and  promised  to  erect  houses  for  them  forthwith. 

In  Fiji  the  building  of  houses  is  much  more  expedi- 
tious than  with  us,  some  taking  only  a  few  hours  to 
erect,  while  the  more  substantial  ones  occupy  from  a 
fortnight  to  three  months  in  their  construction.  They 
are  made,  for  the  most  part,  with  posts,  spars,  and 
reeds,  the  long  sloping  roof  and  low  walls  being 
thickly  thatched.  In  some  cases  the  walls  are 
made  by  interlacing  the  reeds  between  the  posts, 
perpendicularly  and  horizontally,  the  fastenings  being 
of  vines  cut  from  the  woods,  or  of  sinnet,  which  is 
also   used  for  ornament,    patterns  being  worked   in 


38  JAMES   CALVERT. 

different  colours,  which  are  at  times  both  beautiful 
and  artistic. 

Sinnet  is  a  kind  of  native  string  or  rope,  and 
forms  quite  an  important  article  of  manufacture  in 
these  parts.  It  is  made  from  the  fibre  of  the  cocoa- 
nut  husk,  which  is  dried  by  baking,  then  combed 
out  and  plaited  or  braided,  the  thickness  of  the  plait 
being  regulated  to  suit  the  purpose  for  which  it  is 
intended  to  be  used.  It  is  afterwards  dyed  a  variety 
of  colours,  and  made  into  balls  or  hanks.  The 
Fijians  use  it  to  make  fishing-nets,  and  for  all  kinds 
of  lashing  and  wrapping  purposes,  as  well  as  to 
ornament  their  canoes,  houses,  and  temples.  In 
fact,  sinnet  is  as  important  to  the  Fijian  as  bamboo 
is  to  the  Chinaman,  and  quite  as  useful. 

The  thatching  of  the  houses  is  composed  of  long 
grass,  or  leaves  of  the  sugar-cane  or  stone-palm. 
These  leaves  are  sewn  together  before  being  used, 
and  bound  round  reeds  some  five  or  six  feet  in 
length  ;  and  in  this  way  they  form  a  very  durable 
covering.  When  sufficient  material  for  the  thatch 
has  been  collected,  and  the  roof  prepared  with  a 
network  of  reeds,  men  and  boys,  numbering  at 
times  as  many  as  four  hundred,  appear  on  the 
scene,  and  great  excitement  prevails,  all  being  ex- 
pected to  help  with  the  work,  some  in  arranging 
and  lashing  the  thatch,  while  others  hand  up  the 
necessary  grass  and  reeds.  While  the  thatching  is 
being  done  a  great  deal  of  shouting  and  yelling 
goes  on,  which,  with  the  stamping  down  of  the 
thatch,  makes  noise  enough  to  be  heard  a  great 
distance  around. 

The  interior  of  the  house  usually  consists  of 
one  large  room,   at  one  end  of  which  is  a  sort  of 


PIONEERS  IN  FIJI  39 

dais  raised  about  a  foot  from  the  rest  of  the 
floor,  and  upon  this  the  principal  members  of  the 
establishment  sleep.  There  are  two  small  holes 
or  windows  at  this  end  of  the  room,  and  these,  as 
well  as  the  door,  have  sliding  palm-leaf  shutters, 
which  can  be  opened  or  closed  at  will.  The  floors 
are  soft  and  springy,  being  made  of  layer  upon 
layer  of  mats,  commencing  with  those  made  of 
coarse  palm  leaves  at  the  bottom,  and  having  for 
final  covering  the  beautifully  made  white  mats  for 
which  the  South  Sea  Islanders  are  celebrated. 

We  left  the  mission  families  still  on  board  the 
schooner,  waiting  until  their  houses  were  ready. 
This  work  was  accomplished  by  the  natives  in 
about  three  days,  in  some  such  way  as  we  have 
described.  Of  course  the  houses  were  but  slight 
ones,  the  king  having  promised  to  have  more  sub- 
stantial dwellings  erected  at  some  future  time. 
However,  he  did  not  see  fit  to  fulfil  his  promise 
until  the  temporary  houses  had  been  destroyed  by 
a  hurricane.  The  two  families  took  possession  of 
their  respective  dwellings,  providing  them  with  doors, 
windows,  and  such  other  comforts  as  the  time  and 
skill  of  the  missionaries  could  produce. 

On  the  following  Sabbath,  the  first  Christian 
service  in  Fiji  was  conducted  in  the  Tongan  lan- 
guage, which  was  understood  by  the  king  and  many 
of  the  people,  through  their  long  association  with 
Tongan  immigrants.  A  new  era  had  now  dawned 
upon  Fiji,  and  its  civilization  may  be  said  to  have 
begun.  The  mission  houses  and  families  became 
objects  of  great  interest  and  curiosity  to  the  natives. 
Many  were  the  visits  paid  by  them,  not  so  much  for 
the  purpose  of  inquiring  into  the  truths  taught,  as  to 


40  JAMES  CALVERT. 

barter  their  services,  or  supplies  of  food,  for  tools, 
calico,  or  such  other  articles  as  had  been  brought  for 
this  purpose,  and  which  they  had  never  been  fortunate 
enough  to  possess  before. 

These  frequent  visits  caused  some  inconvenience 
to  the  occupants  of  the  mission-houses,  but  were  not 
without  good  results,  as  they  provided  opportunities 
of  teaching  those  who  lived  too  far  off  to  be  visited 
in  their  own  homes.  Besides,  the  intercourse  with  a 
civilized  home  could  not  have  other  than  an  elevating 
influence  on  these  heathen  savages.  God's  blessing 
was  upon  the  work,  and  after  a  time  a  chapel  was 
built  by  the  native  Christians,  in  which  a  congregation, 
numbering  about  two  hundred,  assembled  regularly 
for  worship  ;  classes  were  formed  for  church  mem- 
bers, and  schools  for  pupils  of  all  ages  ;  while  a  few 
months  later  the  missionaries  had  the  joy  of  baptizing 
thirty-one  adults  who,  after  careful  instruction  and 
examination,  were  found  possessed  of  sufficient  know- 
ledge to  enable  them  to  realize  the  obligations  such 
a  profession  would  entail. 

Persecution  now  arose,  in  which  the  king  was  the 
chief  mover.  He  became  jealous,  and  was  annoyed 
at  the  growing  power  of  Christianity,  and  thought  to 
put  an  end  to  it  by  threatening  a  severe  visitation 
of  punishment  from  the  gods.  Finding  this  did  not 
have  the  desired  effect,  his  anger  became  greater, 
although  somewhat  checked  by  fear  of  a  powerful 
Tongan  chief,  who  was  "  Lotu,"  as  they  call  the 
profession  of  the  Christian  religion.  However,  this 
fear  did  not  restrain  him  long,  for  some  time  after  a 
party  of  young  men  attacked  the  two  small  towns 
of  Wathiwathi  and  Waitambu,  pillaged  the  houses 
of  the  Christians,  destroyed  their  crops,  and  led  off 


PIONEERS  IN  FIJI.  43 

their  wives  to  the  king's  house.  Still,  no  lives  were 
sacrificed,  and  the  interference  of  the  Tongan  chief, 
mentioned  before,  led  to  the  wives  being  restored. 

This  persecution,  however,  was  not  enough  to  stay 
the  progress  of  the  Gospel.  On  the  contrary,  in  the 
long  run,  it  helped  rather  than  hindered  the  work. 
True,  at  first,  some  half-hearted  ones  fell  back,  and 
others  were  afraid  to  yield  to  their  convictions  ;  yet 
the  calm  boldness  of  those  who  endured  persecution 
without  repining,  much  less  retaliating  or  seeking 
revenge,  which  meekness  was  utterly  opposed  to  all 
their  previous  teaching  and  practices,  argued  strongly 
for  the  reality  and  power  of  the  Gospel  they  had 
embraced,  and  led  others  to  admire  it,  and  ultimately 
to  accept  its  claims. 

Another  source  of  trouble  and  suffering  to  the 
missionaries  was  the  great  difficulty  they  had  in 
communicating  with  other  places.  These  reef- 
bound  islands  made  navigation  very  dangerous  ; 
wrecks  were  so  frequent  from  the,  then,  imperfect 
knowledge  of  the  reefs,  that  captains  and  owners 
were  afraid  to  charter  vessels  for  Fiji.  Consequently, 
at  times,  the  mission  families  were  without  flour  and 
other  necessaries,  having  to  subsist  on  such  food  as 
they  could  obtain  from  the  natives,  for  which  they 
were  obliged  to  barter  goods  they  needed  for  their 
own  comfort.  On  one  occasion  three  years  elapsed 
before  some  clothing  for  which  Mr.  Cross  had  written 
arrived.  This  evil  was  removed  in  later  years  when 
the  Wesleyan  Missionary  Society  built  and  chartered 
a  vessel  to  carry  out  supplies,  and  also  to  convey  the 
missionaries  from  one  island  to  another. 

Having  succeeded,  to  some  extent,  in  Lakemba  and 
some  of  its  dependencies,  the  two  missionaries  became 


44  3^ AMES  CALVERT. 

anxious  to  extend  their  efforts  to  the  opposite  group 
of  islands,  of  which  Bau,  an  island  off  the  coast  of 
Viti  Levu,  Great  Fiji,  was  the  most  important.  Its 
chief  took  precedence  of  all  other  chiefs  in  Fiji.  Of 
him  we  shall  have  more  to  say  in  a  subsequent  chapter. 

In  1837  Mr.  Cross  left  Lakemba,  hoping  to  esta- 
blish a  mission  in  Bau  ;  but  on  arriving  he  found 
the  town  in  such  a  state  of  excitement,  at  the  close 
of  a  seven  years'  war,  that  he  deemed  it  expedient 
to  settle  at  Rewa,  an  island  accessible  to  Bau  by 
a  river  twelve  miles  long.  Here  the  king  seemed 
favourably  inclined  towards  the  "  Lotu,"  and  a  cause 
was  established  which  gave  promise  of  great  success. 
The  temporary  dwelling-place  provided  for  the  mis- 
sionary, however,  was  damp  and  unhealthy,  and 
through  residing  there  Mr.  Cross  was  brought  very 
low  by  intermittent  fever,  cholera,  and  typhus  fever, 
which  followed  in  quick  succession,  and  left  very 
little  hope  of  his  recovery.  But  when  the  darkness 
seemed  thickest  a  kind  Providence  interposed,  and 
help  arrived  in  the  person  of  an  American  settler 
from  Ovalau,  a  large  island  at  no  great  distance 
from  Rewa,  who  showed  great  kindness  to  the  sufferer. 
The  king,  too,  started  the  building  of  a  better  house 
on  a  raised  foundation,  the  occupation  of  which 
greatly  facilitated  Mr.  Cross's  recovery. 

In  1838  a  third  mission-station  was  commenced, 
at  Viwa,  a  small  island  which  rises  out  of  the  coral 
reef  on  the  eastern  side  of  Great  Fiji,  and  a  de- 
pendency of  Bau.  Here  Namosi  Malua,  the  chief, 
built  a  chapel,  and  a  teacher  was  sent  to  instruct 
the  people. 

We  shall  now  leave  the  two  brave  pioneers 
struggling    on    amidst   great  difficulties,  cheered   by 


PIONEERS  IN  FIJI. 


47 


some  success,  which,  however,  only  served  to  reveal 
to  them  the  great  need  of  further  help.  Aching 
hearts  sent  up  earnest  prayer  to  the  Lord  of  the 
harvest,  that  He  would  send  forth  labourers,  and  it 
was  not  long  before  the  answer  came,  when  the 
lonely  toilers  were  cheered  by  the  arrival  of  John 
Hunt  and  James  Calvert. 


PLAYING 

THE 

NOSuL  FLUTE 


MODE 

OF 
DRINKJ 


CHAPTER    III. 


EARLY    DAYS    AND    MARRIAGE. 

"  For  they  who  are  one  in  faith  fight  double-handed  against 
evil." — TUPPER. 


THE  now  memorable  witness  for  Christ,  James 
Calvert,  was  born  at  Pickering,  in  the  county 
of  Yorkshire,  on  the  3rd  of  January,  in  the 
year  181  3.  His  name  is  another  added  to  the  roll 
of  noble  Yorkshiremen  who  have  been  illustrious  in 
the  annals  of  Methodism.  He  received  a  sound 
education  in  Malton,  and  subsequently  was  apprenticed 
for  seven  years  to  Mr.  George  Barnby,  of  that  place, 
who  was  postmaster,  and  carried  on  the  business  of 
printer,  book-binder,  and  stationer. 

At  the  age  of  eighteen  a  severe  affliction  was 
made  the  means  of  bringing  him  to  reflect  upon 
his  past  life,  and  to  dread  the  torments  of  the 
unsaved.  Truly  and  heartily  he  mourned  for  his 
sins,  and  abandoning  every  evil  way,  he  earnestly 
sought  God's  pardoning  mercy  and  renewing  grace. 
When  restored  to  health  he  took  a  firm  Christian 
stand,  came  out  from  among  the  ungodly,  and  became 
a  very  diligent    attendant   at   all    religious  services, 


EARLY  DAYS  AND  MARRIAGE.  49 

regularly  attending  the  class-meeting,  which  he  found 
most  helpful.  In  the  hour  of  his  deepest  distress 
he  beheld  Christ  as  his  Saviour  and  Lord,  and  trusted 
in  Him  alone  and  fully.  He,  then  and  there,  on  the 
8th  April,  t  831,  was  gladdened  by  the  immediate 
and  direct  expression  of  God's  favour,  and  was  re- 
newed by  the  Divine  Spirit.  This  event  is  still 
remembered  as  a  memorable  one  in  his  experience. 

Soon  afterwards  James  Calvert  again  became 
deeply  troubled  because  of  the  remains  of  the  carnal 
mind  within  him,  and  his  many  imperfections.  With 
all  his  heart  he  sought  and  received  a  yet  fuller 
baptism  of  saving  grace,  strengthening  all  his  motives 
for  Christian  service.  This  thorough  change  in  the 
entire  man,  so  clear  and  satisfactory  to  himself  and 
to  all  who  knew  him,  stamped  the  character  of  all 
his  future  life  and  work,  and  he  delights  to  testify 
everywhere  his  gratitude  to  God  for  the  glorious 
events  of  these  ever-to-be-remembered  days. 

At  the  expiration  of  his  apprenticeship,  in  May, 
1833,  he  removed  to  Beverley.  Another  severe 
affliction  laid  him  aside  for  some  months.  When 
restored  he  pursued  his  calling  for  some  years  at 
Colchester  and  Chelmsford,  and  gained  proficiency 
in  his  trade,  qualifying  himself,  as  he  thought,  for 
efficient  business  life.  He  also  gained  knowledge 
and  experience  in  many  matters,  which  in  after 
years  became  of  the  utmost  value  to  him  in  his 
mission  work. 

At  Colchester  the  superintendent  minister,  the 
Rev.  Henry  Powis,  discovering  in  the  young  man 
gifts  and  talents  for  future  usefulness,  recommended 
him  as  a  candidate  for  the  Christian  ministry,  sending 
his  name  to  the  London  District  Meeting  in  the  May 


50  'JAMES  CALVERT. 

of  I  S3 7.  He  was  accepted  specially  for  the  foreign 
work,  and  went  for  preparation  to  the  Theological 
Institution  at  the  old  Hoxton  Academy.  Here  he 
was  under  the  care  of  the  Rev.  Joseph  Entwisle,  the 
Governor.  The  Rev.  John  Hannah  was  the  theo- 
logical tutor,  and  the  Rev.  Samuel  Jones  had  charge 
of  the  classical   side. 

An  important  point  in  young  Calvert's  life  while 
here  was  the  friendship  which  sprang  up  between 
him  and  John  Hunt,  a  fellow-student  ;  an  attach- 
ment which  was  not  broken  even  by  death,  which 
removed  the  latter  from  his  post  of  usefulness. 

While  these  two  were  preparing  for  foreign  mission 
service,  the  hearts  of  Methodists  were  thrilled  by  a 
powerful  appeal  on  behalf  of  cannibal  Fiji,  early  in 
1838,  and  James  Calvert  was  appointed  to  accompany 
his  beloved  friend  to  that  new  mission.  It  was  a 
prospect  of  danger  and  suffering  enough  to  affright 
minds  of  weaker  mould  ;  but  these  two  young  men, 
being  imbued  with  a  yearning  for  souls  and  full  of 
zeal  for  God,  determined  to  sacrifice  their  lives,  if 
need  be,  to  the  demands  of  these  dark  and  distant 
islands. 

After  James  Calvert  had  been  appointed  by  the 
Wesleyan  Missionary  Society  to  the  work  in  Fiji,  he 
went  down  to  Buckinghamshire  to  ask  Mary  Fowler 
to  become  his  wife,  and  to  share  with  him  the  trials 
and  privations  incident  to  a  residence  among  canni- 
bals. Previous  to  this,  he  had  made  the  acquaintance 
of  Philip  Prowler,  and  it  was  while  visiting  at  his 
home  that  he  first  met  Mary,  who  was  the  sister  of 
his  friend.  The  choice  was  a  very  happy  one  ; 
for  although  the  acquaintance  had  been  of  short 
duration,  and  consequently   their  knowledge  of  each 


£:a rl y  days  a nd  ma RRIA GE.  5 1 

other  was  limited,  yet  the  good  hand  of  God  was 
over  His  servant  in  this,  as  we  shall  see  it  was 
again  and  again  in  other  matters,  and  the  "  good 
wife  " — which  Solomon  tells  us  is  "  from  the  Lord  " 
— became  his  possession.  She  was  a  wife  in  every 
way  adapted  to  the  trying  work  to  which  her  life 
was  given,  and  much  of  the  success  of  that  work  was 
due  to  her  patient,  devoted  labours. 

Mary  Fowler  was  born  at  Aston  Clinton,  in 
Buckinghamshire,  in  1814.  During  the  early  years 
of  her  life  she  had  a  painful  illness,  which  caused  her 
much  suffering.  In  bearing  this  affliction,  however, 
she  began  to  develop  that  patient  and  heroic  endu- 
rance which  characterized  the  toils  and  pains  of  her 
after  life. 

It  was  Mary's  privilege  to  have  a  godly  mother, 
one  who  dared  to  be  true  to  her  convictions,  even 
when  they  incurred  the  displeasure  of  others,  as  was 
the  case  when  she  joined  the  Methodist  Society. 
Very  deeply  did  this  loving  mother  feel  her  responsi- 
bility in  the  training  of  her  children,  and  many  were 
the  hours  she  spent  in  prayer  to  God  on  their  behalf. 
One  petition  was  remarkable  ;  she  prayed  that  God 
would  spare  her  life  to  see  all  her  children  converted 
and  settled  in  life,  and  it  is  worthy  of  notice  that 
she  passed  away  only  a  few  months  after  her  prayer 
had  received  complete  fulfilment. 

The  year  1834  will  long  be  remembered  as  one 
of  those  in  which  this  country  has  been  visited  with 
the  scourge  of  cholera.  Many  of  the  towns  and  villages 
of  Buckinghamshire  were  smitten.  Special  services 
were  held,  calling  the  people  to  repentance  and  faith 
in  God,  before  whom  many  of  their  neighbours  had 
been  summoned  to  appear.      Buckland,  a  village  near 


52  JAMES  CALVERT. 

Aston,  was  visited  by  the  Rev.  J.  Killick,  who  gives 
the  following  account  of  one  of  these  services  : — 

"On  the  8th  of  October,  1834,  I  went  to  tea 
with  the  kind  and  hospitable  family  at  Aston — Mrs. 
Fowler's — as  was  my  usual  practice  before  preaching 
at  Buckland.  I  found  that  the  cholera  had  removed 
several  in  the  neighbourhood,  after  a  few  hours' 
suffering.  In  consequence  of  this,  when  we  reached 
the  chapel  we  found  it  filled  with  people  in  a  very 
excited  state.  I  preached  that  night  from  Isaiah  Iv. 
7,  8,  thinking  it  was  suitable  to  the  circumstances  in 
which  we  were  assembled.  I  went  again  the  next 
night,  and  preached  from  Amos  iv.  12,  "Prepare  to 
meet  thy  God."  A  prayer-meeting  was  held  after 
each  service,  when  in  every  part  of  the  chapel  there 
were  strong  cryings,  tears,  and  prayers,  to  Him  who 
was  able  to  save.  I  distinctly  remember  the  then 
Mary  Fowler  as  one  of  the  earnest  suppliants  for 
mercy.  She  particularly  requested  her  brother  to 
come  and  pray  with  her.  I  believe  she  found  peace 
with  God,  through  faith  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  on 
that  second  night." 

After  joining  the  Church,  Mary  Fowler  at  once  set 
to  work  for  her  new  Master  ;  she  was  no  idler  in  the 
vineyard.  Sunday  morning  found  her  traversing 
roads  which  were  sometimes  almost  impassable,  to 
attend  the  early  prayer-meeting,  which  she  often 
conducted.  This  was  followed  by  morning  school, 
in  which  she  took  part.  Then  came  the  walk  home, 
and  back  again  to  the  afternoon  and  evening  services, 
at  which  her  place  was  seldom  unoccupied.  On 
other  days  Mary  was  busy  among  the  sick  and  poor, 
for  whom  she  would  obtain  relief  from  friends  when 
her  own  means  failed.      Thus,  in  taking  up  the  work 


EARLY  DAYS  AND  MARRIAGE.  53 

which  came  most  readily  to  hand,  and  fulfilh'ng  each 
task  with  Christian  fidelity,  she  was,  unconsciously, 
being  prepared  for  greater  deeds  of  doing  and  daring 
for  her  Master  in  the  far-off  Isles  of  Fiji. 

James  Calvert  and  Mary  Fowler  were  married  in 
March,  1838  ;  and  about  a  month  later  they  started 
on  their  long  voyage  to  New  South  Wales,  from 
which  place  they  were  to  go  to  Fiji,  in  company  with 
the  Rev.  John  Hunt  and  the  Rev.  T.  J.  Jagger ;  it 
being  designed  that  all  the  party  should  assist  in  the 
work  in  Fiji. 

Sydney  was  reached  in  the  following  August,  and 
here  the  mission  party  were  detained  for  some  time 
before  completing  their  journey.      During  this  short 
stay  the  services  of  the  missionaries  were   much   in 
demand,  for  preaching  and  attending  meetings.     Thus 
it  happened  that  Mr.  Calvert  was  appointed  to  preach 
on    Sunday  in   the  open  air  near  the   Hay  Market, 
when  an  incident  occurred  that  seemed  to  set  God's 
seal  of  approval  on  the  work  of  His  devoted  servant. 
It  was  to  both   Mr.  and   Mrs.  Calvert  an  earnest  of 
what  was  to  be  accomplished  by  them  in   the  future. 
By  some   mistake   the    preacher    began   the    service 
before  the  appointed  time,  and  ere  the  congregation 
had  assembled.     Mrs.  Calvert  started  the  tune  for  the 
hymn  Mr.   Calvert  had  announced.      At  length  the 
people  gathered   round,  and    the    service   was    gone 
through    with    much    earnestness.       The    next    day 
a     letter    arrived    telling    the    following     story ;    it 
was  from   a  young  man  who  had,  on  the  previous 
day,  landed  at  Sydney    from    Tasmania,    where   he 
had   been   living  a  godless  life.      Finding,  on  going 
to  his   lodgings,  that  his  pockets  had   been  picked, 
leaving  him    penniless — added    to   the    remorse    of 


54  JAMES  CALVERT. 

a  guilty  conscience — he  made  up  his  mind  to  end 
his  days  by  suicide.  While  on  his  way  to  carry 
out  this  dreadful  intention,  he  was  attracted  by  the 
hymn  Mrs.  Calvert  had  commenced,  and  thought  it 
would  be  well  to  take  part  in  a  religious  service 
before  he  died.  He  joined  himself  to  the  listeners, 
and  soon  the  preacher's  words  took  him  back  in 
thought  to  the  home  of  his  childhood.  Long-buried 
memories  of  godly  parents,  away  in  London,  who  had 
tried  to  teach  him  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  were  revived  ; 
and  after  reading  the  tract  given  him  by  Mrs. 
Calvert,  he  was  completely  turned  from  his  evil  pur- 
pose, and  decided  to  seek  the  "  God  of  his  fathers." 
When  told  afterwards  that  the  preacher  had  begun 
the  service  earlier  than  was  intended,  he  wept  and 
said,  "  If  you  had  not,  I  should  have  been  a  dead 
man."  This  circumstance  served  to  strengthen  the 
faith  of  the  missionary  and  his  wife,  showing  them, 
as  it  did,  how  God  was  overruling  all  the  little  events 
of  their  lives,  even  when  they  were  all  unconscious  of 
the  end  He  had  in  view. 

The  stay  in  Sydney  was  made  specially  pleasant 
by  the  presence  there  of  the  Rev.  John  Williams  and 
a  large  band  of  the  London  Society's  missionaries. 
On  the  night  before  their  departure  all  joined  to- 
gether at  a  farewell  meeting  in  the  Baptist  Chapel, 
and  on  the  following  morning  were  taken  on  board 
their  respective  vessels,  anchored  in  the  splendid 
Sydney  waters,  by  the  same  steamer,  and  passed 
out  of  the  Sydney  Heads  together,  the  Camden 
bearing  off  to  the  Navigators'  Islands,  where  the 
goods  and  missionaries  were  landed,  and  thence  she 
sailed  to  Erromanga,  where  the  devoted  Williams 
was   murdered   and  eaten. 


EARLY  DAYS  AND  MARRIAGE. 


55 


The  missionaries  for  Fiji  left  S}'dney  on  the  25th 
of  October,  1838,  for  Lakemba  and  Rewa.  This 
passage,  a  very  uncomfortable  one,  was  made  in  a 
small  schooner,  the  Lctitia.  They  reached  Lakemba 
in  December,  after  spending  some  little  time  in  the 
Friendly  Islands,  where  they  made  the  acquaintance 
of  King  George  of  Tonga.  The  friendship  of  this 
good  and  powerful  man  afterwards  proved  very 
valuable  to  the  interests  of  the  mission.  In  Fiji, 
King  George  was  known  and  feared,  and  on  several 
occasions  his  interference  on  behalf  of  persecuted 
Christians  brought  them  relief 

It  was  not  long  before  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert 
became  settled  in  their  new  sphere  of  Christian 
work — in  which  they  continued  for  nearly  ten 
years.  The  Rev.  J.  Hunt  was  appointed  to  labour 
at   Rewa. 

Some  of  the  joys  and  sorrows,  the  triumphs  and 
disappointments,  of  the  work  in  Lakemba  we  shall 
recount  in  our  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


AT    WORK    IN    LAKEMBA. 


"  Let  us  watch  avvliile  the  sowers  ; 

Let  us  mark  their  tiny  grain, 
Scattered  oft  in  doubt  and  trembling, 

Sown  in  weakness  or  in  pain  ; 
Then  let  Faith,  with  radiant  finger, 

Lift  the  veil  from  unseen  things. 
Where  the  golden  sheaves  are  bending, 

And  tlie  harvest  anthem  rings." 

F.  R.  Havergal. 

NO  sooner  were  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  settled  in 
their  home  at  Lakemba  than  their  work 
began  in  good  earnest.  At  first  it  was 
decided  to  give  the  new-comers  time  to  acquire 
the  language  before  any  fresh  stations  were  com- 
menced, but  the  demand  for  teaching  was  so 
pressing  that  the  missionaries  felt  bound  to  scatter 
themselves  over  as  large  an  area  as  possible  ;  and 
thus  it  happened  that,  six  months  after  their  arrival 
in  Fiji,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  found  themselves  left 
alone  at  Lakemba,  in  charge  of  a  large  and  laborious 
circuit,  which  included  thirteen  towns  on  the  island 


AT  WORK  IN  LAKEMBA.  57 

of  Lakemba,  besides  twenty-four  surrounding  islands, 
some  of  them  over  a  hundred  miles  distant. 

The  means  of  transit  were  as  yet  most  difficult, 
there  being  no  roads  between  one  town  and  another, 
scarcely  a  safe  footpath,  and  no  beast  of  burden  or 
conveyance  was  at  this  time  in  use  on  any  of  the 
islands  ;  and  for  journeys  by  sea  the  missionary 
found  it  difficult  to  obtain  the  use  of  a  seaworthy 
canoe. 

It  is  hard  for  us  to  realize  what  this  situation 
meant.  Here  was  a  solitary  white  man,  with  his 
wife,  possessing  only  a  very  imperfect  knowledge  of 
the  people  or  their  language,  surrounded  by  a  little 
church,  among  whom  at  present  scarcely  an  influ- 
ential person  was  to  be  found.  Outside  this  little 
community  the  most  ferocious  forms  of  cruelty 
existed  and  were  in  constant  practice,  often,  indeed, 
within  sight  of  the  missionaries. 

Alone — yet  not  alone — stood  these  courageous 
ones  in  the  fight  against  evil  ;  for  He  who  walked 
in  the  fiery  furnace  to  protect  the  three  Hebrew 
children  was  also  walking  with  His  faithful  servants, 
shielding  them  from  the  craft  and  malice  of  these 
vicipus  people.  It  v/ould  seem  as  though  in  the 
case  of  Mrs.  Calvert  the  sights  and  scenes  around 
her  must  only  excite  a  feeling  of  repulsion  and 
disgust ;  but  such  was  not  the  case  with  this  gentle, 
devoted  lady.  As  soon  as  she  got  hold  of  the 
language,  she  began  to  work  in  the  school  and  to 
meet  classes  ;  while  her  musical  talent  was  employed 
in  teaching  the  people  to  sing.  Like  her  Master,  in 
His  pitying  tenderness,  she  came  down  to  the  level 
of  these  unfortunate  creatures,  and  tried  to  comfort 
them  in  their  sorrows,  and  raise  them   above  the  sin 


58  JAMES   CALVERT. 

and  degradation  into  which  they  had  fallen,  through 
the  cruel  customs  of  their  religion  and  nation.  Thus 
did  Mrs.  Calvert  prove  herself  a  helpmeet  to  her 
husband,  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  in  the  great 
work  to  which  he  had  devoted  his  life. 

Much  inconvenience  was  occasioned  at  the  mission- 
house  by  the  pilfering  habits  of  the  people,  and  the 
clever  cunning  they  displayed  in  order  to  escape 
detection.  Various  things  were  constantly  disappear- 
ing from  the  barter  stores,  and  even  from  the  kitchen. 
And  not  content  with  this,  a  regular  burglary  was 
planned  about  this  time,  and  successfully  carried  out. 
On  rising  one  morning  one  of  the  missionaries  was 
surprised  to  find  that  a  hole  had  been  cut  in  the 
reed  wall  of  his  house,  through  which  a  large  number 
of  articles  of  wearing  apparel  had  been  stolen.  A 
quantity  of  large  stones  close  by  told  of  the  murderous 
intention  of  the  thieves,  if  they  had  happened  to  meet 
with  any  resistance.  The  king,  however,  did  not 
countenance  this  conduct,  and  on  this  occasion  showed 
his  displeasure  in  Fijian  style,  by  taking  off  a  finger 
from  several  children  related  to  the  offenders.  But 
this  state  of  things  did  not  last  long,  for  Mr.  Calvert 
soon  gained  the  confidence  of  the  people  by  visiting 
them  in  their  own  homes,  which  had  the  twofold 
advantage  of  dissipating  his  own  fears,  and  also  of 
helping  him  in  gaining  a  correct  knowledge  of  the 
language.  In  this  way  a  mutual  trust  sprang  up 
between  missionary  and  people,  which  was  of  great 
advantage  to  both. 

Tui  Nayau,  the  king,  did  not  show  any  more 
favour  to  the  "  Lotu  "  now  than  in  the  days  of 
Mr.  Cargill.  He  was  often  a  cause  of  grief  and 
annoyance  to  Mr.  Calvert,  who,  notwithstanding  this, 


AT   WORK  IN  LAKE  MB  A.  59 

faithfully  reproved  his  wrong-doings,  and  patiently 
tried  to  persuade  him  to  accept  the  truth.  Per- 
sistently, but  in  an  underhand  wa)'',  he  still  did  all 
in  his  power  to  oppose  Christianity,  while  his  brother, 
Toki,  followed  the  policy  of  open  resistance,  and 
greatly  influenced  the  king,  who  seems  to  have 
lacked  that  strength  of  purpose  which  characterized 
most  of  these  Fijian  potentates,  and  made  them 
powerful   for  good  or  evil. 

On  one  occasion  Mr.  Calvert  waited  on  Tui  Nayau 
and  Toki,  and  asked  that  the  people  of  Nasangkalu 
might  join  the  "  Lotu  "  if  they  wished,  assuring  the 
king  and  his  brother  that  if  permission  were  granted 
all  respect,  labour,  and  tribute  would  be  paid  them 
as  usual.  Both  chiefs  professed  to  believe  that 
Christianity  was  a  good  thing  for  their  followers,  and 
to  be  quite  willing  that  they  should  please  themselves 
in  matters  of  religion.  Forthwith  Mr.  Calvert  started 
for  Nasangkalu  to  tell  its  inhabitants  the  good  news; 
but  before  he  reached  the  town  he  was  met  by  two 
women,  who  had  arrived  before  him  with  a  message 
from  the  king.  This  message  was  to  forbid  the 
people  to  become  Christians,  and  threatening  to 
banish  all   who  disobeyed   the  command. 

Pursuing  his  journey,  Mr.  Calvert  found  that  this 
order  had  had  the  disastrous  effect  of  making  the 
people  afraid  to  follow  his  teaching.  Still  he  was 
cheered  by  the  conduct  of  one  man  who  yielded  to 
his  convictions,  at  the  expense  of  having  to  leave  his 
home.  He  became  servant  to  a  Tongan  who  lived 
near  the  Mission  House  at  Lakemba,  and  after 
proper  instruction  went  to  Vatoa  as  a  native  teacher, 
where  he  died  after  much  faithful  and  successful 
service.     The  conduct  of  the  king  on  this  occasion 


6o  JAMES   CALVERT. 

furnishes   an   example    of  the  cunning    duplicity  in 
which  the  Fijian  excels. 

Later  on,  however,  Tui  Nayau  showed  less  hostility 
to  the  work,  and  even  favoured  its  extension,  either 
because  he  was  in  a  better  state  of  mind,  or  because 
he  saw  it  would  answer  his  purpose  to  do  so. 

This  was  the  case  with  the  island  of  Oneata, 
which  is  situated  forty  miles  south-east  of  Lakemba, 
and  was  subject  to  it.  Here  the  work  of  a  Fijian 
teacher,  and  the  visits  of  the  missionary,  had  been 
productive  of  much  good.  A  church  and  school 
were  established,  in  the  working  of  which  many  of 
the  natives  took  part.  The  work  prospered  until 
nearly  all  the  inhabitants  were  Christians.  In  1842 
it  was  found  necessary  to  build  a  larger  chapel, 
when  these  industrious  and  enterprising  people  went 
to  work  with  a  will,  and  soon  erected  a  structure 
large  enough  to  hold  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  island. 
To  many  the  building  seemed  unnecessarily  large, 
but  before  it  was  opened  for  worship  the  king  sent 
a  message  requesting  all  the  people  to  join  the 
"  Lotu,"  and  many  who  were  only  waiting  for  his 
sanction  at  once  renounced  their  heathen  worship. 
Among  these  were  the  head  chief  and  priest  of  the 
island.  Thus,  when  the  chapel  was  opened  it  was 
found  to  be  just  the  right  size,  and  those  who  had 
expended  their  time  and  strength  upon  it  were 
rewarded  by  seeing  it  well  filled  with  earnest  worship- 
pers. Altogether  these  Oneata  people  were  a  race 
of  superior  intelligence,  industry,  and  enterprise,  and 
were  therefore  a  great  acquisition  to  Christianity  in 
Fiji.  They  owned  many  canoes,  with  which  they 
traded  with  other  islands,  boldly  defending  them 
from  the  grasp  of  more  powerful  chiefs.     After  they 


AT  WORK  IN  LAKEMBA. 


6i 


became  Christians,  like  those  of  the  early  Church, 
they  went  about  preaching  the  Word  wherever  they 
journe}-ed,  and  in  many  places  much  good  was  done. 
In  this  Avay  the  Gospel  was  taken  to  Vanuam- 
balavu,  an  important  island,  situated  half-way 
between  Lakemba  and  Somosomo,  to  which  it  was 
subject.  The  inhabitants  of  this  island  were  related 
to  those  of  Oncata,  and  had  the  same  gods,  a 
privilege  which  in  Fiji  gives  the  possessors  the  right 


A   NATIVE  DANCE. 


to  pilfer  each  other's  goods,  and  also  to  swear  the 
one  at  the  other.  After  the  business  which  occasioned 
these  visits  was  over,  it  was  usual  to  have  dancing 
and  singing  ;  but  now  the  new  converts,  instead  of 
thus  spending  their  time,  began  to  talk  about  their 
rehgion,  and  to  urge  these  relatives  of  theirs  to 
"  Lotu."  This  confession  of  Christ  on  the  part  of 
these  Oneata  people  met  with  much  opposition  at 
first  ;  but  after  a  time,  a  chief  of  rank,  named 
Mbukarau,  accepted  their  invitation  and  embraced 
the  Gospel.      He  was  a  brave,  fearless  man,  and  had 


62  JAMES   CALVERT. 

been  much  dreaded  previous  to  his  conversion  ; 
afterwards,  chiefs  and  priests  began  to  threaten  and 
oppose  him  ;  but  this  he  endured  manfully,  living  up 
to  all  the  light  he  had,  while  earnestly  seeking  to 
know  the  way  of  the  Lord  more  perfectly. 

After  a  time,  he  made  a  voyage  to  Lakemba  to 
request  that  a  teacher  might  be  sent  to  instruct  his 
people.  The  teacher  on  arrival  found  that  several 
others  had  joined  Mbukarau  in  his  Christian  worship, 
and  great  joy  was  evinced  at  the  teacher's  coming. 
The  chief's  house  was  soon  crowded  with  worshippers, 
and  gradually  the  opposition  of  the  heathen  began 
to  give  way.  Joseph  Mbukarau  became  a  teacher 
and  preacher  himself,  and  was  the  means  of  leading 
many  others  into  the  light  of  the  Gospel. 

Inter-tribal  wars,  the  cause  of  so  much  bloodshed 
in  Fiji,  now  began  to  wage  between  Yaro  and 
Lomolomo,  two  districts  into  which  Vanuambalavu 
was  divided.  In  these  wars  the  Christians  refused 
to  join,  and  were  permitted  to  remove  to  Munia,  a 
small  island  about  nine  miles  distant.  Here,  with 
Joseph  Mbukarau  at  their  head,  they  established  in 
time  a  flourishing  colony,  where  they  remained  free 
from  the  claims  of  war.  The  sturdy  character  of 
the  religion  of  these  early  Christians  in  Fiji  is  worthy 
of  note.  Manfully  did  many  of  them  endure  perse- 
cution, exile,  and  even  death,  rather  than  com- 
promise their  principles.  On  one  occasion,  when 
Tuikilakila,  the  ferocious  King  of  Somosomo,  came 
on  a  visit  to  Lomolomo,  to  receive  tribute,  arrange- 
ments were  made  for  the  presentation  to  take  place 
on  the  Sabbath  ;  in  this  the  Christians  refused  to 
take  part,  thus  risking  the  displeasure  of  a  king  who 
had  threatened   to   kill   and   eat   any  of  his   subjects 


AT   WORK  IN  LAKEMBA.  63 

who  should  "  Lotu."  Contrary,  however,  to  their 
expectation,  and  also  that  of  the  heathen,  he  per- 
mitted them  to  do  homage  and  offer  tribute  on  the 
following  day. 

In  later  years,  when  nearly  all  this  group  of 
islands  had  given  up  heathenism,  the  Sabbath  was 
so  rigidly  kept  that  no  canoe  was  seen  putting  to 
sea  except  to  take  some  teacher  or  preacher  to  his 
appointment  ;  and  no  bribe  was  sufficient  to  tempt 
a  Christian  native  to  climb  a  tree  or  gather  cocoa- 
nuts  or  other  fruit. 

This  principle  was  severely  put  to  the  test  in 
1874  and  1875,  when  the  Balolo  festival  occurred 
on  Sunday.  As  this  festival,  or  Feast  of  Worms, 
is  peculiar  to  these  islands,  we  shall  give  Miss 
Gordon-Cumming's  description   of  it: — 

"  The  balolo  is  a  small  sea-worm,  long  and  thin  as 
ordinary  vermicelli.  Some  are  fully  a  yard  long, 
others  about  an  inch.  It  has  a  pointed  body  and 
many  legs,  and  lives  in  the  deep  sea.  Only  on  two 
days  in  the  whole  year  do  these  creatures  come  to  the 
surface  of  the  water.  The  first  day  is  in  October, 
which  is  hence  called  '  Little  Balolo,'  when  only  a 
few  appear.  The  natives  know  exactly  when  they 
are  due,  and  are  all  on  the  look-out  for  them.  They 
make  their  calculations  by  the  position  of  certain 
stars.  After  this  no  more  are  seen  till  the  high  tide 
of  the  full  moon  which  occurs  between  the  20th 
and  25  th  of  November,  which  hence  takes  the  name 
of  '  Great  Balolo,'  when  they  rise  to  the  surface  in 
countless  myriads,  always  before  daybreak.  In  the 
Samoan  Isles  the  day  occurs  about  a  fortnight 
earlier.  At  certain  well-known  points  near  the 
reefs,  the  whole  sea,  to  the  depth  of  several   inches. 


64  JAMES  CALVERT. 

is  simply  alive  with  these  red,  green,  and  brown 
creatures,  which  form  one  writhing  mass,  and  are 
pursued  by  shoals  of  fish  of  all  sizes,  which  come  to 
share  the  feast  with  the  human  beings.  The  latter 
are  in  a  state  of  the  wildest  excitement,  for  it  is  the 
merriest  day  of  the  year,  and  is  looked  forward  to 
from  one  November  to  the  next  by  all  the  young 
folk.  At  midnight  they  go  out  in  their  canoes,  and 
anxiously  await  the  appearance  of  the  first  few 
worms,  and  great  is  the  struggle  to  secure  these, 
which  herald  the  appearance  of  untold  myriads. 
For  several  hours  there  is  the  merriest  sport  and 
laughter,  every  one  bailing  up  the  worms  and  trying 
who  can  most  quickly  fill  his  canoe,  either  by  fair 
sport  or  by  stealing  from  his  neighbour. 

"  All  is  noise,  scrambling,  and  excitement,  the 
lads  and  lasses  each  carrying  wicker  baskets,  with 
which  they  capture  the  worms  without  carrying  too 
much  salt  water  on  board.  As  the  day  dawns,  these 
mysterious  creatures  with  one  accord  sink  once  more 
to  their  native  depth,  and  by  the  moment  of  sunrise 
not  one  remains  on  the  surface  ;  nor  will  another  be 
seen  for  twelve  months,  when,  true  to  its  festival, 
the  balolo  will  certainly  return.  Never  has  it  been 
known  to  fail  in  the  memory  of  the  oldest  inhabitant, 
white  or  brown.  Nor  is  there  any  record  of  any  one 
having  seen  one  rise  to  the  surface  on  any  save  the 
two  appointed  days,  which  are  known  as  the  '  Little 
Balolo '  and  '  Great  Balolo.'  Well  do  the  natives 
know  how  needless  it  would  be  to  look  for  one  after 
sunrise,  so  all  the  canoes  then  return  to  land,  wrap 
their  balolo  in  bread-fruit  leaves,  cook  them  in  ovens 
dug  on  the  beach,  and  have  a  great  feast.  So  great 
is  the  quantity  taken  that  the  supply  generally  lasts 


AT  WORK  IN  LAKEMBA. 


65 


for  several  days,  being   warmed    up    when  required, 
and  basketfuls  are  sent  to  friends  at  a  distance. 

"  Such  is  our  prejudice  against  all  manner  of 
worms,  that  few  Europeans  appreciate  this  dainty, 
which,  nevertheless,  is  really  not  nasty,  especially 
when  eaten  with  bread  and  butter.  It  is  rather  like 
spinach  with  a  flavour  of  the  sea.  Sad  to  say,  both 
this  year  and   last  year  the  full-moon  tide  occurred 


PREPARATION    OF    FOOD. 


on  Sunday  morning  ;  notwithstanding,  the  irreligious 
little  worms  rose  to  the  surface  with  their  wonted 
punctuality.  So  rigid  is  the  obedience  of  all  the 
Wesleyans  in  the  matter  of  Sabbatical  observance, 
that  not  one  of  their  canoes  went  out  ;  whereas 
their  Roman  Catholic  brethren,  to  whom  more  laxity 
is  allowed,  went  forth  rejoicing.  The  latter,  however, 
are  a  very  small  minority,  and  you  can  imagine 
what  an  act  of  self-denial   it  must  be  to  give  up  this 

5 


66  JAMES  CALVERT. 

highly  valued  harvest  of  the  sea  on  two  following 
years." 

We  cannot  wonder  that  Miss  Gordon-Cumming 
closes  her  remarks  on  this  subject  by  saying,  "  Cer- 
tainly they  are  the  most  devout  race  (for  Christians) 
that  I  have  ever  seen." 

The  story  of  the  conversion  of  Tangithi,  the 
daughter  of  Tui  Nayau,  is  a  very  interesting  one. 
When  this  young  lady  was  about  twenty  years  of 
age,  she  was  taken  seriously  ill,  and,  as  was  cus- 
tomary in  Fiji,  the  king  set  about  trying  to  appease 
the  supposed  anger  of  the  gods  by  having  the  tem- 
ples repaired,  and  ordering  large  offerings  of  food  to 
be  prepared   in    every  town   on  the  island. 

Thousands  of  taro-roots  were  baked,  and  presented 
together  with  nineteen  large  puddings.  Fijian  pud- 
ding is  a  very  favourite  article  of  diet,  and  is  made 
with  ground  taro-root,  which  is  baked  in  leaves  in 
small  portions,  and  afterwards  mixed  together  with 
cocoa-nut  and  boiled  sugar-cane  juice.  A  case  for  the 
reception  of  this  mixture  is  made  with  a  large  number 
of  banana  leaves.  On  this  occasion  the  largest 
pudding  measured  twenty-one  feet  in  circumference. 

But  while  all  this  preparation  was  going  on, 
Tangithi  was  getting  worse  ;  so  Mr.  Calvert  was 
asked  to  pay  her  a  second  visit.  He  found  the 
priest  with  her,  going  through  his  incantations,  and 
rubbing  her  body  at  the  same  time. 

The  king  was  much  excited,  and  said,  "  The  illness 
of  my  daughter  is  very  great  !  " 

"  Yes,"  said  the  missionary,  "  I  know  it ;  and  you 
are  to  be  blamed  for  following  useless  heathen 
worship,  instead  of  continuing  the  use  of  medicine 
which   proved  beneficial." 


AT  WORK  IN  LAKEMBA.  67 

With  this  he  refused  to  prescribe  unless  these 
heathen  rites  were  abandoned. 

To  this  the  king  consented,  and  the  medicine  was 
given,  which,  while  reviving  her  from  her  uncon- 
sciousness, caused  her  to  toss  about  restlessly.  This 
made  the  king  think  she  was  dying,  and  in  anger 
he  cried  out,  "  You  have  killed  my  daughter ! " 
Mr.  Calvert's  situation  now  became  dangerous,  sur- 
rounded as  he  was  by  the  angry  king  and  his 
enraged  heathen  subjects,  many  of  whom  would 
have  been  well  pleased  to  get  permission  from  the 
king  to  kill  the  missionary. 

It  was  now  the  missionary's  turn  to  be  angry, 
and  he  vehemently  expressed  his  indignation  at 
being  charged  with  taking  the  life  of  the  princess, 
after  he  had  been  good  enough  to  comply  with  their 
request  and  administer  medicine  sent  from  England 
for  the  use  of  his  own  family. 

With  this  he  snatched  up  his  bottles  and  hurried 
home,  glad  to  escape.  Once  there,  he  secured  his 
house  and  awaited  anxiously  for  news,  well  knowing 
that  his  life  might  not  be  worth  much  if  the  princess 
died  during  the  night.  With  the  morning  came  the 
news  that  Tangithi  was  a  little  better  ;  and  later  on 
another  message  was  sent  from  the  king,  asking  for 
medicine  for  another  of  his  children  who  was  suffer- 
ing from  dysentery. 

Mr.  Calvert  sent  word,  "  Give  my  respects  to  the 
king,  and  tell  him  that  I  do  not  wish  to  send  any  more 
medicine  for  his  children,  having  killed  his  daughter 
last  night  !  And  it  is  not  lawful  for  a  missionary  to 
kill  two  children  of  a  king  in  so  short  a  time !  " 

This  reply  brought  an  apology,  and  after  some 
delay  the  medicine  was  sent, 


68  JAMES  CALVERT. 

Tangithi  was  now  under  the  priests'  care,  who  for 
four  weeks  tried  all  their  charms  and  sacrifices  for 
her  recovery,  but  all  to  no  purpose  ;  the  poor  girl 
only  grew  worse.  At  the  end  of  this  period  the 
king  gave  his  consent  for  her  to  renounce  her 
heathenism,  and  requested  that  she  and  her  attend- 
ants might  be  removed  to  the  Mission  House,  so  that 
she  could  have  Mr.  Calvert's  constant  oversight. 

Of  course  compliance  with  this  request  would  occa- 
sion much  inconvenience  to  the  mission  family  ;  but 
Mrs.  Calvert,  with  characteristic  unselfishness,  lost 
sight  of  her  own  trouble  in  the  hope  of  teaching 
and  helping  these  heathen  women.  A  letter,  dated 
August  iith,  1842,  written  by  Mrs.  Calvert  to  her 
brother,  thus  describes  the  visit  of  this  princess  to 
the  Mission   House  : — 

^'  Several  men  brought  her  on  some  pieces  of  wood 
fastened  together  for  the  purpose,  and  she  was  put  into 
our  study.  She  began  to  recover  rapidly,  and  in  a  few 
days  was  able  to  sit  up  and  eat  her  food  with  her 
attendants,  who  were  not  a  few.  The  young  princess 
said,  '  I  only  hated  religion,  and  am  now  greatly 
ashamed  of  my  past  conduct.  I  was  extraordinary 
in  telling  lies,  and  if  I  had  died  in  my  illness  I 
should  not  have  known  anything  about  religion.' 
She  soon  learned  the  alphabet,  and  is  getting  on 
well  with  her  book.  She  left  us  last  Tuesday, 
strong  and  well.  It  is  about  six  weeks  since  she 
first  came.  The  king  said  afterwards,  *  There  is 
a  famine  of  whales'  teeth  [in  consequence  of  the 
large  offerings  made  to  the  gods],  yanggona  [of 
which  the  king  is  very  fond],  and  of  food.  Yet, 
after  all,  Tangithi  would  have  died  if  she  had  not 
served  the   true    God.'       About    three    weeks    since 


AT  WORK  IN  LAKEMBA.  69 

one  of  the  king's  children  was    taken    ill,    and    he 
wished    its  mother   to    bring  it  to  our   house,  that 
it  might  have  medicine  and  be  under  Mr.  Calvert's 
care.      The    dear    baby    soon    got    worse,    and    the 
mother  said  it  was  to   '  Lotu.'      They   went  to  ask 
the  king  if  the  child   might  embrace  religion.     The 
king  said    '  Yes.'      We    told    the    mother    that    the 
child    did   not   know   anything    about   religion,    and 
that  it  would  be  well  for  her  to  pray  to  the  true 
God,  and    endeavour    to    feel    resigned   to   His  will. 
However,  in  two  or  three  days  the  baby  died  ;  and 
of  all  the  noises  I  ever  heard,  theirs  was  the  worst. 
It  died  in   the  middle  of  the   night,  and   they  called 
up  Mr.  Calvert  to  inform  him.      He  got  up,  and  had 
one  of  our   boxes  prepared   for  burying  it.      I  kept 
in    bed   with    the   children.      The   child's  name  was 
Mata-ika,  and  the  mother  kept  crying,  '  Where  are 
you    going,   Mata-ika  ? '       And    really    if    shouting, 
screaming,  pulling  the  poor  child's  eyes  open,  oiling 
its  body,  and  tumbling  it  about  could  have  fetched 
the   babe   to   life  again,   they  could   not   have  done 
more    for    it   than    they    did.     They    kept   up    this 
awful    noise  for  about   six   hours   in  our   house.      I 
shall   never  forget    it.     We   were    quite    afraid    the 
mother  would  go  and   burn  her  body,  and  shave  her 
head,  or  do  something  of  this  sort,  as  is  customary 
with  the  natives.     She  made  her  hands  tabu  [sacred] ; 
so  that   when   she    ate   some   persons   fed    her,   and 
the  same  when  she  smoked.      The  natives  are  sad 
smokers,  and  grow  their  own  tobacco. 

"  I  fear  I  shall  tire  you  with  what,  perhaps,  will 
not  be  interesting.  Please  forgive  me.  I  should 
have  said  that  in  a  few  days  the  mother  returned 
to  our  house,  said  the  child  had  died  in  the  religion, 


70  JAMES  CALVERT. 

and  she  herself  would  follow  it.  She  attends  the 
chapel  on  the  Sabbath,  and  comes  to  the  female 
school  on  the  week-days.  What  a  blessing  if  it 
should  be  the  means  of  her  conversion  !  God  grant 
it  may  !  " 

It  was  now  evident  to  all  the  heathen  around  that 
Tangithi  owed  her  recovery  to  the  missionary's  God, 
when  their  own  heathen  priest  had  failed  to  effect  a 
cure  ;  which  fact  lessened  their  faith  in  heathen  gods, 
and  led  some  to  renounce  them.  The  princess 
became  a  consistent  member  of  the  Church  and  a 
great  help  to  the  cause. 

But  a  severe  trial  awaited  Tangithi,  from  which  it 
seemed  impossible  that  her  Christian  friends  could 
deliver  her.  In  early  days  she  had  been  betrothed 
to  Tanoa,  the  cannibal  King  of  Bau,  whose  brutali- 
ties are  said  to  have  exceeded  those  of  all  the  other 
Fijian  kings  in  fiendish  horror.  And  now  the  time 
had  arrived  for  Tangithi  to  become  one  of  his  many 
wives.  Resistance  was  in  vain,  and  accordingly  she 
was  sent  to  Bau.  Here  she  was  subjected  to  all 
kinds  of  persecution,  because  she  persisted  in  pray- 
ing to  t^he  true  God,  and  not  until  her  life  was  in 
danger  from  sickness,  brought  about  by  ill-treatment, 
was  she  allowed  to  return  to  Lakemba.  Her  kind 
friends  at  the  Mission  House  received  her  with  much 
joy,  but  she  was  not  allowed  to  stay,  for  as  soon  as 
her  health  was  restored  she  was  ordered  to  return 
to  Bau,  where  she  again  suffered  much  from  her 
persecutors. 

But  her  release  was  at  hand,  for  after  the  death 
of  Tanoa  she  was  allowed  to  visit  her  father,  on 
condition   that  she  returned  with  larfje  offerings  as 


A T  WORK  AT  LA KEMBA .  7 1 

tribute.  Changes  had  meanwhile  taken  place, 
both  at  Lakemba  and  Bau;  the  former  king  was 
nominally  a  Christian,  and  did  not  seem  disposed 
to  comply  with  these  terms,  especially  as  the  power 
of  the  Bau  king  was  much  weakened,  and  Tui 
Nayau  had  consequently  less  to  fear  from  his 
displeasure. 

After  a  time  King  George  of  Tonga  visited  Bau, 
when  the  king  informed  him  how  his  Lakemban 
vassals  had  served  him,  and  promised  that  Tangithi 
should  be  free  to  return  home  if  she  brought  him 
the  promised  tribute.  King  George,  seeing  the 
justice  of  the  claim,  undertook  to  have  it  carried 
out.  But  when  on  his  way  to  Bau  with  Tangithi, 
he  found  that  the  king  meant  to  deceive  him,  so  he 
returned  with  her  to  Lakemba,  where  she  remained 
an  earnest  worker  in  the  Mission  Church. 

In  1847,  Mrs.  Calvert,  in  writing  home,  thus  refers 
to  an  interview  she  had  with  Tui  Nayau : — 

"  Many  of  our  people  are  suffering  with  influenza, 
and  most  of  our  time  is  taken  up  in  attending  to 
the  sick.  The  king  is  very  poorly  with  it,  and  he  is 
dreadfully  alarmed  lest  he  should  die.  This  morn- 
ing, before  it  was  light,  his  people  called  me  up  to 
go  and  see  him.  We  were  soon  at  his  house,  and 
there  we  found  him  surrounded  by  the  chiefs  and 
people,  sitting  on  a  mat  by  the  side  of  the  fire,  with 
a  piece  of  white  native  cloth  tied  on  each  arm,  and 
two  or  three  head-dresses  round  his  head.  He  told 
us  that  this  was  his  preparation  for  death  ;  for  he 
knew  very  well  that  he  should  die.  I  told  him  that 
he  did  not  look  like  a  dying  man,  and  that  he  must 
at  once  throw  away  his  decorations.  He  did  so, 
and  we  gave  him  some  plain  truth.      He  said,  '  Leave 


72  JAMES  CALVERT. 

me,  and  I  will  "Lotu"  as  soon  as  I  am  well.'  We 
reasoned  with  him  a  long  time,  and  then  came  away. 
We  have  been  three  times  to  see  him,  but  he  still 
says  he  shall  die." 

About  two  years  after  this  visit  from  Mrs.  Calvert, 
Tui  Nayau,  the  King  of  Lakemba,  publicly  renounced 
heathenism,  and  professed  Christianity. 

Another  conversion    worthy   of  notice   here    was 
that  of  a  Levukan   chief,  who,  with  his   tribe,  had 
settled   at   Lakemba.     This   man,  by  his   vigour  of 
character  and  industry,  as  well  as  by  his  unscrupulous 
duplicity,  had    acquired  wealth  and    power.      Many 
were   the  outrages   he   had    perpetrated   when    sent 
to    collect    tribute    for    the   Lakemban    king.       His 
tribe  was    subject    to    the  powerful    King  of    Bau, 
and    with    him    the    chief    exerted    all    the    power 
he   possessed    to  destroy  Christianity  in   Lakemba. 
Shortly  before  Mr.  and   Mrs.  Calvert  left  Lakemba, 
an    opportunity  occurred    for    conversing   with   this 
man   of  blood.      Faithfully  did  the   missionary   re- 
prove  and    exhort    him    to   consider  the   claims   of 
the   Gospel.       The   truth    impressed   him,   and   after 
further  inquiry  his  conscience  became  troubled,  and 
it  was    not   long    before   this   notorious   sinner   was 
found  acknowledging  his  sins,  and  earnestly  seeking 
the  forgiveness  of  God.      A  great  change  now  came 
over  him.      He  became  as  earnest  in  doing  good  as 
previously    he    had    been     in    his    wickedness,    and 
wherever  he  went  his  conduct  showed  how  thorough 
was  the  change  which  had  taken  place  in  his  heart 
and  life.      His  energy   now  found   vent  in   working 
for  the  Mission;  and  before  long  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  chapels  in  that  district  was  erected  chiefly 
at   his    expense.      At   the  opening^  service  of  this 


A T  WORK  AT  LA KEMBA .  75 

sanctuary  he  put  away  his  many  wives,  and  was 
married  to  one  by  reh'gious   rite. 

We  insert  here  a  quotation  from  that  excellent 
work,  "  Fiji  and  the  Fijians,"  by  Thomas  Williams 
and  James  Calvert,  to  which  book  we  have  already 
acknowledged  our  indebtedness  for  many  valuable 
facts  in  the  preparation  of  this  volume  : — 

"  During  the  progress  of  the  events  just  recorded, 
the  Mission  was  slowly  advancing  at  the  chief  island 
of  Lakemba,  which,  beside  several  Tongan  settlements, 
has  ten  Fijian  towns  and  villages.  It  was,  of  course, 
impossible  for  the  missionary  and  his  assistants  to 
visit  all  of  the  many  islands  included  in  the  Lakemban 
circuit;  but  the  truth  reached  all,  for  the  people  came 
to  Lakemba  to.  procure  goods,  or  for  other  purposes, 
and  they  always  called  at  the  Mission  House,  where 
care  was  taken  to  impart  instruction.  All,  however, 
were  afraid  of  the  king  and  chief  in  the  principal 
town,  so  that  for  a  long  time  there  was  not  much 
apparent  success.  Yet  this  town  was  regularly 
visited  by  the  missionaries,  who  were  occasionally 
cheered  by  tokens  of  good  having  been  effected. 

"  On  visiting  Yavutha,  a  heathen  who  was  sick, 
Mr.  Calvert  heard  with  gratitude  of  the  fruit  of 
another  missionary's  teaching.  Yavutha  begged  him 
to  sit  near,  and  said,  '  I  have  desired  a  visit  from 
you.  I  wished  to  go  to  your  house  that  we  might 
worship  the  true  God  together,  but  I  could  not  ;  I 
have  therefore  made  an  offering  to  the  gods  we  have 
worshipped.  I  hate  them  much.  They  are  liars. 
I  am  greatly  grieved  because  I  have  long  neglected 
to  worship  the  true  God.  I  am  now  determined  to 
pray  to  God.  If  I  die  while  worshipping  Him  it 
will  be  well.      Mr.  Cross  is  a  good   man.      He  was 


76  JAMES  CALVERT. 

of  few  words,  but  we  always  felt  when  he  spoke 
to  us.' 

"  In  the  presence  of  the  chiefs,  their  wives,  and 
several  of  his  friends,  Mr.  Calvert  made  known  to 
him  more  fully  the  nature  of  sin  and  the  atonement 
of  the  Saviour,  and  then  at  his  request  prayed  for 
him.  Mr.  Cross  had  then  left  five  years,  and  this 
long  delayed  result  of  good  greatly  encouraged  this 
missionary." 

Such  are  some  of  the  events  which  took  place 
during  the  ten  years  in  which  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert 
were  at  work  at  Lakemba — years  crowned  with 
mercies,  many  of  them  full  of  joy,  others  clouded 
with  sorrow  and  disappointment.  This  we  see  by 
Mr.  Calvert's  own  resume  of  his  toil,  with  which 
extract  we  close  this  chapter  : — 

"  I  have  lived  in  Lakemba  in  great  peace,  have 
been  on  friendly  terms  with  all,  and  have  been  con- 
nected with  a  most  extensive  spread  of  Christianity 
in  Lakemba  and  its  dependencies.  There  by  far  the 
best  part  of  my  life  has  been  spent.  I  feel  heartily 
attached  to  the  people  and  the  place,  and  could 
gladly  spend  there  the  residue  of  my  days,  were  I 
directed  by  God's  all-wise  providence  to  remain. 
Lakemba  is  to  me  more  than  all  the  world  beside. 
Yet  where  God  commands  and  directs  I  cheerfully 
go.  I  only  desire  to  be  where  He  approves,  and  to 
do  what  He  requires,  for  the  few  remaining  days  He 
may  employ  me.  For  three  separate  years  I  was 
alone  at  Lakemba,  and  twice  I  was  with  missionaries 
who  came  direct  from  England. 

"  I  have  sailed  to  many  of  the  islands  in  this 
circuit  in  canoes — to  Ono,  Vatoa,  Ongea,  Vulanga, 
Namuka,      Oneata,     Mothe,      Komo,     Vuang-gava, 


AT   WORK  AT  LAKEMBA.  -jj 

Kambara,Vanua  Vatu,  Nayau,  Vanuambalavu,  Munea, 
and  Tuvutha,  inhabited  ;  to  Aiwa,  Olorua,  and 
Tavunasithi,  uninhabited.  I  have  walked  much  on 
the  island  to  the  various  towns.  There  I  have  had 
much  and  long-continued  sickness  and  much  health. 
There  our  Mary  was  given  back  to  us  when  ap- 
parently gone.  There  my  beloved  wife — after  the 
failure  of  copious  bleeding  for  several  times,  the 
application  of  blisters,  and  cuppings  with  razor  and 
tumbler,  in  the  absence  of  proper  apparatus — was 
raised  again,  in  mercy,  in  answer  to  earnest  and 
believing  prayer. 

"  While  I  have  endeavoured  to  be  faithful  to  God 
and  with  men,  I  have  to  mourn  over  much  unfaith- 
fulness, and  thankfully  rejoice  that  the  Lord  has 
blessed  me,  and  done  all  things  well.  Lakemba  ! 
I  love  thee !  Farewell !  From  thee  I  cannot  be 
separated.  My  prayers,  thoughts,  efforts  shall  still 
be  towards  thee.  I  hope  many  thence  will  be  the 
crown  of  my  rejoicing  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus. 
I  fear  I  shall  be  witness  against  many  who  perish 
after  frequent  and  faithful  warning.  I  laboured 
diligently,  I  trust,  to  do  the  people  good  temporally 
and  spiritually  ;  and  God  accompanied  many  of  my 
efforts  with  His  blessing.  My  five  children,  born 
there,  are  all  alive.  Praise  the  Lord  for  all  His 
goodness  !  O  Lord,  bless  abundantly,  and  for  ever, 
Lakemba  and  all  its  dependencies!" 


SEA    CUCUMBEPJ 


CHAPTER  V. 


CHRISTIANITY    AT    ONO. 


"  An  infant  crying  in  the  night, 
An  infant  crying  for  the  Hght, 
And  with  no  language  but  a  cry." 

'•  The  people  that  sat  in  darkness  have  seen  a  great  light." 

PERHAPS  the  most  strange  and  touching  scenes 
connected  with  the  mission  to  Fiji  were  those 
which  took  place  on  the  island  of  Ono.  This 
island  is  the  principal  of  an  isolated  group,  situated 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  south  of  Lakemba, 
to  which  it  was  tributary.  It  forms  the  southernmost 
extremity  of  Fiji.  Without  any  prompting,  except 
that  which  must  have  come  from  God's  good  Spirit, 
these  people  began  to  grope  from  their  own  deep 
heathen  darkness  towards  the  light.  The  circum- 
stances which  led  to  this  movement  we  will  now 
relate. 

In  the  year  1835,  about  the  same  time  that  the 


CHRISTIANITY  AT  ONO.  79 

mission  to  Fiji  was  commenced,  several  events 
transpired  which  tended  to  crush  the  spirit  of  the 
inhabitants  of  these  islands.  Numbers  of  the 
people  had  been  killed  in  the  wars,  in  which  they 
were  nearly  always  engaged,  while  still  more  had 
been  carried  off  by  an  epidemic  disease  that  had 
raged  among  them.  Thus,  much  fear  and  excite- 
ment prevailed.  Large  offerings  were  made  to  the 
gods,  whose  displeasure  they  thought  was  the  cause 
of  these  disasteis.  Every  act  of  worship  was  most 
carefully  carried  out,  but  all  in  vain ;  the  gods  refused 
to  be  propitiated,  and  the  troubles  of  the  people 
increased. 

Just  about  this  timeWai,  one  of  the  chiefs  of  Ono, 
went  to  Lakemba,  bearing  the  usual  tribute  to  the 
king,  and  while  there  met  with  a  Fijian  chief  called 
Takai,  who  had  been  to  the  Friendly  Islands,  where 
he  had  heard  of,  and  embraced,  Christianity.  From 
this  man  Wai  learnt  that  there  was  but  one  God, 
whom  all  ought  to  serve,  and  that  one  day  in  seven 
should  be  set  apart  for  His  worship.  With  these 
very  elementary  truths  he  returned  to  Ono,  and 
spread  them  among  his  people. 

These  people,  feeling  that  their  own  gods  could 
not,  or  would  not,  deliver  them  out  of  their  distresses, 
determined  to  apply  to  this  new  God  in  the  way 
prescribed.  Accordingly,  on  the  sixth  day  they 
prepared  their  food  for  the  morrow,  when  they 
dressed  as  for  a  festival,  and  assembled  together 
to  worship  this  unknown  God.  But  here  a  difficulty 
arose  as  to  who  should  officiate  for  them,  for  they 
were  not  used  to  praying  except  through  the  priest. 
Still  their  project  was  not  thus  early  to  be  abandoned  ; 
so  in  their  dilemma  they  sent  for  the  heathen  priest, 


8o 


JAMES  CALVERT. 


and   asked   him    to    address  this   new   God    in   their 
behalf.     Moved,    either   by   fear,    or  compassion,    or 


^^^4Afi«^'^:i 


A  CHIEF  AND   HIS   ATTENDANT. 


honour,  the  priest  came  to  the  rescue,  and  asked  the 
Christians'  God  to  help  and  bless  the  people,  at  the 


CHRISTIANITY  A  T  ONO.  8i 

same  time  acknowledging  that  he  himself  was  on 
another  tack,  and  worshipped  a  different  God,  and 
that  he  was  only  acting  as  spokesman  for  his 
neighbours. 

This  kind  of  worship  was  continued  for  some  time, 
while  every  day  the  longing  for  more  knowledge 
became  deeper.  But  the  isolated  position  of  this 
island  made  it  very  difficult  for  the  inhabitants  to 
communicate  their  wish,  that  a  teacher  who  could 
supply  their  need  might  be  sent  to  them.  The 
voyage  to  Tonga  in  an  open  canoe  was  a  very 
dangerous  one,  even  when  the  wind  was  favourable 
enough  to  permit  of  its  being  attempted. 

After  a  while,  however,  a  messenger  was  sent  to 
Tonga  on  a  whaling  ship,  which  happened  to  touch 
at  Ono,  requesting  that  a  teacher  might  be  sent ; 
but  several  months  had  to  pass  before  an  answer 
could  be  returned. 

In  the  meantime  a  canoe  full  of  Tongans  had 
left  Lakemba  for  their  native  land  ;  but  contrary 
winds  prevailed,  and  they  were  driven  out  of  their 
course,  and  landed  at  Vatoa  Island,  about  fifty  miles 
from  Ono.  While  there  they  heard  of  the  interest 
the  people  at  Ono  had  in  the  Christians'  God,  and 
one  of  their  number,  whose  Christian  name  was 
Josiah,  determined  to  go  over  and  teach  them  what 
he  knew.  On  arriving,  he  took  the  place  of  the 
heathen  priest,  led  the  daily  devotions  of  the  people, 
as  well  as  taught  them  on  Sundays,  and  some  of 
these  people  soon  learnt  to  pray  for  themselves. 

After  a  time  the  messenger  returned  from  Tonga, 
bringing  tidings  that  white  teachers  were  settled  at 
Lakemba,  and  that  to  them  the  people  must  apply 
for  help,  which  would  cause  another  long  delay. 

6 


82  JAMES   CALVERT. 

But  all  unknown  to  any,  except  God — "  who  moves 
in  a  mysterious  way  His  wonders  to  perform  " — 
a  teacher  was  being  trained  at  Lakemba  for  this 
work  at  Ono.  One  of  their  own  islanders,  a  wild 
lad  of  roving  disposition,  had  managed  to  reach 
Tonga  in  safety.  While  there  he  found  the  people 
worshipping  a  new  God.  He  attended  their  services, 
and  afterwards,  when  living  at  Lakemba,  became  a 
true  convert  under  Mr.  Cargill's  teaching,  and  was 
baptized,  taking  the  name  of  Isaac  Ravuata.  He 
was  a  bright,  intelligent  youth,  and  quickly  learned 
to  read  and  write  ;  and  ultimately  he  became  a 
valuable  local  preacher.  So  when  the  request  for 
a  teacher  for  Ono  reached  Mr.  Cargill,  here  was 
just  the  man  ready  to  go,  directly  an  opportunity 
occurred  for  sending  him.  In  the  interval  he  was 
gaining  further  instruction,  tending  to  fit  him  for 
taking  charge  of  the  church,  which,  being  situated 
at  so  great  a  distance  from  the  principal  mission- 
station,  could  be  visited  but  seldom  by  the  missionary 
himself. 

When  Isaac  arrived  at  Ono,  he  found  that  one 
hundred  and  twenty  persons  had  renounced  their 
heathen  worship,  and  many  more  were  thirsting  for 
a  knowledge  of  the  Christian  faith.  A  year  later 
another  teacher  was  sent,  with  books  and  small 
portions  of  Holy  Scripture.  By  this  time  throe 
chapels  had  been  built  ;  and  the  people  were  so 
anxious  for  instruction  that  they  scarcely  allowed 
the  Christian  crew,  who  had  brought  the  new  teacher, 
time  to  sleep  or  refresh  themselves. 

The  return  of  the  canoe  to  Lakemba  brought  news 
that  the  island  of  Vatoa  had  also  become  "  Lotu," 
and  that  the  people  of  these  islands  were  anxiously 


CHRISTIANITY  AT  ONO. 


«3 


waiting  a  visit  from  the  white  missionary,  when  many 
hoped  to  be  baptized  and  united  in  marriage.  It 
was  very  hard  for  Mr.  Calvert  to  refuse  this  invitation, 
and  yet  harder  still  for  him  to  comply  with  it,  for  at 
this  time  he  was  labouring  alone  at  Lakemba,  and 
travelling  as  frequently  as  possible  among  the  other 
twenty  islands,  on  which  mission-stations  had  been 
established.  Even  if  his  time  and  strength  had  per- 
mitted of  his  taking  so  long  a  journey,  involving  an 
absence  of  weeks,  perhaps  months,  how  could  he  have 
left  his  wife  alone  among  ferocious  people  for  so 
long  a  time,  especially  as  Tui  Nayau,  the  king,  was 
still  opposed  to  the  truth  >  No  wonder  the  missionary 
wavered  in  the  face  of  this  great  difficulty.  But  in 
the  crisis  it  was  the  brave-hearted  Mrs.  Calvert  who 
urged  him  to  go,  saying,  "  It  would  be  much  better 
to  leave  me  alone  than  to  neglect  so  many  people. 
If  you  can  arrange  for  the  work  to  be  carried  on 
here  you  ought  to  go." 

This  difficulty  overcome,  another  arose  from  the 
fact  that  no  suitable  canoe 
could  be  obtained  for  such 
a  dangerous  voyage,  while 
the  desire  to  venture  had 
been  deepened  by  a  fur- 
ther very  urgent  request 
from  Ono,  stating  that  the 
missionary's  presence  was 
more  than  ever  needed. 
It  was  not  long,  however, 
before  Mr,  Calvert  was 
able  to  get  a  Tongan  chief,  who  came  to  Lakemba 
with  a  large  but  not  seaworthy  canoe,  to  consent  to 
take  him  to  Ono.      So,  leaving  his  courageous  wife 


84  JAMES   CALVERT. 

and  little  child  to  the  care  of  their  Almighty  Pro- 
tector, he  set  sail,  and  reached  Vatoa  in  a  few  days, 
where  he  found  the  native  teacher  doing  well.  After 
a  short  stay,  he  left  for  Ono. 

At  Ono  the  people  rejoiced  greatly  to  see  the 
missionary,  and  his  heart  was  made  glad  when  he 
found  how  genuine  a  work  had  been  begun  among 
them.  Over  one  hundred  were  eligible  for  baptism. 
Among  these  were  many  interesting  cases  of  con- 
version, one  of  which  may  be  given  here  at  length  : — 

Tovo  was  a  young  lady  belonging  to  the  highest 
rank  in  the  island,  the  daughter  of  a  chief,  and 
said  to  be  beautiful.  It  was  known  to  Mr.  Calvert 
that  she  had  been  betrothed,  in  infancy,  to  Tui 
Nayau,  King  of  Lakemba,  so  he  now  declined  to 
administer  the  rite  of  baptism  unless  she  refused  to 
become  one  of  the  thirty  wives  of  that  monarch. 
Realizing  well  the  trouble  that  might  arise  from  this 
course  of  action,  Tovo  declared  her  willingness  to  die 
rather  than  be  compelled  to  fulfil  her  betrothal  ;  and 
all  the  Christians  expressed  their  determination  to 
suffer  anything  rather  than  give  her  up  to  Tui  Nayau. 
At  her  baptism  she  took  the  name  of  Jemima,  and 
having  already  learnt  to  read,  she  became  a  great 
help  in  the  school  and  in  other  religious  work. 

Altogether  Mr.  Calvert  was  absent  from  Lakemba 
about  three  weeks.  Soon  after  his  return  he  waited 
upon  the  king,  and  told  him  of  Tovo's  baptism, 
explaining  that  she  could  not  now  become  one  of 
his  wives,  and  trying  to  get  him  to  relinquish  his 
claim,  but  without  success.  Incited  by  the  heathen 
of  Ono,  Tui  Nayau  began  to  prepare  a  fleet  of  canoes 
manned  with  warriors  to  go  to  that  island.  On  hear- 
ing of  this,  Mr.  Calvert  went  to  him,  with  the  cus- 


CHRISTIANITY  AT  ONO.  85 

tomary  offering  of  a  whale's  tooth,  and  begged  him 
to  refrain  from  persecuting  these  Christian  subjects  of 
his.  An  interesting  conversation  took  place.  "  You 
are  preparing  to  voyage  to  Ono,"  said  Mr.  Calvert. 
"  I  understand  that  you  intend  to  compel  Jemima 
to  be  brought  to  you.  I  beg  you  will  not  do  so, 
but  allow  her  to  remain  at  her  own  island,  a 
Christian." 

"  Oh,  no ;  I  am  only  going  there  for  tribute,  sinnet, 
cloth,  mosquito  curtains,  mats,  and  pearl  shell." 

"  If  so,  why  do  you  take  your  warriors  with  you  } 
I  should  have  thought  that  if  you  were  merely  going 
for  tribute  you  would  have  taken  sailors  ;  but  instead 
of  that  you  take  a  number  of  warriors." 

"  Oh,  they  are  good  sailors  also.  I  shall  manage 
very  well  with  them." 

"  Tui  Nayau,  before  you  venture,  I  warn  you 
faithfully.  I  love  you,  and  therefore  warn  you. 
God's  people  are  as  the  apple  of  His  eye.  In  thus 
fetching  this  girl  you  are  fighting  against  God.  You 
will  imperil  your  own  safety  if  you  go  on  such  an 
errand.  Remember  that  on  the  sea,  and  at  all  the 
islands  between  Lakemba  and  Ono,  the  Lord  Jehovah 
rules  supreme,  and  can  easily  punish  you  if  you  are 
found  fighting  against  Him.  Take  care  what  you 
are  about." 

"  Oh,  no  ;  I  do  not  intend  anything  of  the  kind. 
I  am  only  just  going  to  my  own  island,  to  fetch 
tribute,  as  I   have  done  before." 

Feeling  sure  that  the  king  was  deceiving  him, 
Mr.  Calvert  departed,  saying  these  bold  prophetic 
words  :  "  I  hear  what  your  mouth  says,  but  do  not 
know  what  your  heart  intends.  I  do  not  know 
what  you  really  purpose,  but  forewarn  you   that  you 


86  JAMES  CALVERT. 

are  risking  your  own  safety  if  you  attempt  to  fetch 
Tovo  from  Ono," 

Nothing  daunted,  the  king  set  sail,  and  the  voyage 
went  prosperously  at  first.  When  he  reached  Vatoa, 
however,  he  threw  off  the  disguise  he  had  assumed 
as  to  his  intention  towards  the  Christians,  and 
ill-treated  those  who  were  on  that  island,  allowing 
his  people  to  destroy  their  food  and  steal  their 
property.  A  contrary  wind  then  sprang  up,  which 
detained  the  king,  but  four  canoes  of  his,  containing 
warriors,  were  sent  forward  to  await  his  arrival 
at  Ono.  These  had  on  board  about  one  hundred 
men,  who  were  never  heard  of  afterwards.  Either 
they  were  drowned  at  sea,  or  being  shipwrecked, 
were  thrown  upon  some  heathen  island,  where  they 
were  killed  and  eaten,  according  to  the  binding 
custom.  When  the  wind  changed  the  king  and  his 
party  started,  but  although  they  came  within  sight 
of  Ono,  the  wind  having  shifted  again,  they  were 
unable  to  reach  the  entrance  and  shore.  As  night 
came  on  affairs  became  serious.  The  wind  rose, 
and  the  sea  raged  ;  so  that  the  king,  remembering 
Mr.  Calvert's  warning,  gave  up  all  hope  of  rescue. 
He  prepared  himself  for  death,  by  oiling  his  body, 
putting  on  a  royal  dress  and  a  beautiful  necklace  ; 
and  he  prayed  to  his  gods,  promising  large  thank- 
offerings,  together  with  a  special  pig,  fed  by  his  own 
hand,  if  he  got  back  safely  to  Lakemba. 

During  the  next  day  the  king  and  his  party  came 
in'  sight  of  Totoya,  where  they  landed  in  safety. 
Here  they  were  treated  kindly,  and  entertained  until 
it  was  safe  for  them  to  start  home  again.  On 
arriving  at  Lakemba,  Tui  Nayau  begged  the  mission- 
ary that  his  "  words  of  warning  might  never  follow 


CHRTSTTANITY  AT  ONO.  87 

him  again  ;  "  and  the  pig  he  had  vowed  to  sacrifice  to 
his  god  was  sent  to  Mr.  Calvert,  thus  showing  that 
he  believed  that  his  gods  had  not  rendered  him  help 
in  time  of  danger,  but  that  it  was  of  the  Lord's  mercies 
he  was  not  consumed. 

It  is  very  remarkable  that  two  canoes  which  were 
manned  with  Christian  sailors  left  Vatoa  at  the  same 
time    as   the  king,  and  yet  reached   Ono  in  safety. 
One  of  these  had  on  board   Toki,  the  king's  brother, 
who  was  more  inveterate  in  his  hatred  of  Christianity 
than  the  king  himself,  yet  his  wrath  was   mercifully 
restrained.      He  landed  first  at  Ndoi,  whence  news 
soon   reached   Ono  that  he  was  coming  to  demand 
Jemima.      The  Christians  were  determined  to  resist 
him,    and    prepared    themselves    against   his   attack. 
Strange  to  say,  they  were  soon  joined  by  the  heathen, 
who  thought  it  best  for  the^r  own  safety  to   make 
common    cause   with  the   Christians.      Meanwhile  a 
message  was  sent  to  inform  Toki  that  all  the  people 
of  Ono  had  joined   together  to  withstand  him,  but 
that  if  he  came  peaceably  they  were  quite  willing  to 
entertain  him,  and  to  pay  the  usual  tribute.      Answer 
was  quickly  made  that  he  meant  to  come  in   peace, 
and  accordingly  the  people  dispersed  to  prepare  food 
for  their  visitors.      On  landing  he  was  well   treated, 
but  a  strict  watch  was  kept  upon  Toki,  lest  he  should 
pounce   upon    them  unawares.     Thus  three  months 
were  spent  waiting  for  Tui  Nayau  and  his  warriors  to 
arrive,  but  these  failed  to  reach  Ono;  and  Toki  accepted 
tribute,  and  returned  home  in  no  better  humour  to- 
wards the  Christians,  who  had  resisted  him  so  firmly. 
After  a  time  Tui  Nayau  expressed  his  willingness 
to  accept  tribute  in  place  of  Tovo.     This  was  readily 
supplied   by   the   people  of  Ono,  and   supplemented 


88 


JAMES  CALVERT. 


by  the  missionary  ;  but  before  it  arrived,  acting 
on  adverse  advice,  he  had  changed  his  mind,  and 
once   more  demanded  the  girl.      Still,  after  his  late 

narrow  escape, 
^=    he     dared    not 


HOMAGE   TO   A    CHIEF. 


dare  propose  to  her,  as  the  king  had  not  relinquished 
his  claim. 

After    Mr.    Calvert's   visit   to    Ono,   the  heathen 
began   to  persecute  the   Christians.      While  engaged 


CHRISTIANITY  AT  ONO.  89 

in  a  prayer-meeting,  two  of  their  number  were 
surprised  ;  one  was  killed,  and  the  other  wounded. 
Fighting  ensued  for  some  weeks,  when  the  Christians 
surprised  their  enemies,  and  completely  defeated 
them.  The  heathen  naturally  expected  to  be 
treated  as  their  conduct  deserved,  and  were  utterly 
amazed  when  their  neighbours  offered  to  pardon 
them  and  spare  their  lives.  Thus  did  these  Ono 
Christians  prove  that  theirs  was  no  mere  profession 
of  religion,  but  a  living  reality,  since  it  taught  them 
to  love  their  enemies,  and  to  do  good  to  those  who 
hated  them. 

Three  years  later  Mr.  Calvert  again  undertook 
the  journey  from  Lakemba  to  Ono,  when  he  was 
rejoiced  to  find  that  the  Church  had  been  visited 
with  an  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  that  the 
whole  population  were  filled  with  an  earnest  religious 
fervour.  In  a  few  weeks  about  two  hundred  persons 
gave  good  hope  of  their  conversion,  and  whole  nights 
and  days  were  spent  in  prayer  and  praise.  Some  of 
the  clear,  earnest  testimonies  of  these  new  converts, 
given  at  a  meeting  over  which  Mr.  Calvert  presided, 
showed  conclusively  that  the  people  had  been  taught 
of  God.  One  said,  "  I  love  the  Lord.  I  know  He 
loves  me  ;  not  for  anything  in  me  or  for  anything  I 
have  done  ;  but  for  Christ's  sake  alone.  I  trust  in 
Christ,  and  am  happy.  I  listen  to  God,  that  He 
may  do  with  me  as  He  pleases.  I  am  thankful  to 
have  lived  until  the  Lord's  work  began.  I  feel  it  in 
my  heart.  I  hold  Jesus  ;  I  am  happy  ;  my  heart  is 
full  of  love  to  God." 

A  native  teacher,  Silas  by  name,  was  requested  to 
pray,  and  the  missionary,  who  was  in  a  weak  state 
of  health    at    the  time,  thus    refers  to   his  prayer  : 


9° 


JAMES  CALVERT. 


"  The  effect  upon  my  poor  frame  was  thrilling,  but 
very  enlivening.  My  spirit  was  quickened  and 
refreshed.  Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  soul,  for  what  I 
see,  hear,  and  feel !  What  hath  God  wrought ! 
Blessed  ,and  praised  be  His  holy  name,  who  only 
doeth  wondrous  things  !  " 

Many  of  these  earnest  men  were  ready  to  go  in 
peril  of  their  lives  to  teach  in  distant  parts  of  Fiji, 
Of  these  eight  were  chosen.  At  the  closing  service 
the  sacrament  was  administered  to  about  three 
hundred,  and  next  morning  a  most  affecting  scene 
took  place,  when  all  the  people  assembled  on  the 
beach  previous  to  the  missionary's  departure.  Again 
all  knelt  in  prayer  for  a  blessing  on  the  eight 
teachers  who  were  going  forth  to  preach  Christ, 
as  the  first-fruits  of  labourers  from  Ono. 

That  this  was  no  mere  passing  excitement  is 
proved  by  the  fact  that  of  all  the  work  in  Fiji, 
that  at  Ono  has  been  most  permanent  and  suc- 
cessful. More  native  teachers  have  been  raised  in 
proportion  to  the  population  than  in  any  of  the 
other  islands  ;  and  while  many  have  entered  into 
rest  after  faithful  labour,  many  more  are  still  at 
work   for  the   Master   in   all   parts   of  Fiji. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


LABOURS    AT    VIWA    AND    T.AU. 

"  Thou  hast  in  triumph  led 
Our  enemies  and  Thine, 
And,  more  than  conqueror,  displayed 
Omnipotence  Divine. 

"  We  see  them  all  before 

Thy  bleeding  cross  subdued, 
And  prostrate  at  Thy  feet  adore 
The  one  eternal  God." 


IN  the  year  1848  the  scene  of  Mr.  Calvert's  labour 
was   changed   from    Lakemba   to    the    western 
group  of  islands,  where  the  devoted  John  Hunt 
had  been  at  work  for  some  years. 

Mr.  Hunt's  serious  illness  took  Mr,  Calvert  to 
Viwa,  and  after  the  death  of  the  former,  it  became 
necessary  for  Mr.  Calvert  to  remove  to  that  island. 
Viwa  is  one  of  the  small  islets  which  rise  from  the 
reef  on  the  eastern  coast  of  Na  Viti  Levu — Great 
Fiji.      At  this  time  it  was  one  of  the   most  valuable 


92  JAMES  CALVERT. 

dependencies  of  Bau,  from  which  it  was  only  two 
miles  distant. 

As  yet  the  missionaries  had  been  unable  to 
establish  a  mission-station  at  Bau.  They  were  very 
anxious  to  do  so,  because  of  the  great  influence  its 
king  exerted  over  all  Fiji,  and  knowing  that  if 
heathen  customs  gave  way  there,  the  hold  they  had 
in  other  parts  would  be  greatly  weakened.  Tanoa, 
the  old  King  of  Bau,  one  of  the  most  ferocious  and 
bloodthirsty  cannibals  in  Fiji,  still  lived  ;  but  the 
government  was  really  in  the  hands  of  Thakombau, 
his  son,  who  was  remarkable  for  his  intelligence  and 
resolution  in  whatever  line  of  conduct  he  adopted. 

Captain  Erskine,  who  visited  Fiji  in  1849  in 
command  of  H.M.S.  HavannaJi,  thus  describes 
Thakombau  : — 

"  It  was  impossible  not  to  admire  the  appearance 
of  the  chief;  of  large,  almost  gigantic,  size,  his 
limbs  were  beautifully  formed  and  proportioned  ; 
his  countenance,  with  far  less  of  the  negro  cast  than 
among  the  lower  orders,  agreeable  and  intelligent  ; 
while  his  immense  head  of  hair,  covered  and 
concealed  with  gauze,  smoke-dried  and  slightly 
tinged  with  brown,  gave  him  altogether  the  appear- 
ance of  an  Eastern  sultan.  No  garments  confined 
his  magnificent  chest  and  neck,  or  concealed  the 
natural  colour  of  his  skin,  a  clear  but  decided  black ; 
and  in  spite  of  this  paucity  of  attire,  he  looked  every 
inch  a  king." 

This  chiefs  conversion  appears  to  have  lain  heavily 
on  Mr.  Calvert's  heart  ;  and  it  was  the  subject  of 
much  earnest  prayer  and  labour,  although  years 
passed  before  it  became  an  accomplished  fact. 

From    the    first    the   missionary  acquired    a   great 


LABOURS  AT   VIIVA    AND  BAU.  93 

influence  over  Thakombau  by  the  most  upright  and 
judicious  conduct  on  his  part,  and  no  opportunity  of 
warning  and  reproving  him  was  lost  sight  of.  No 
public  service  was,  however,  allowed  to  be  conducted 
at  Bau  ;  but  Mr.  Calvert  paid  frequent  visits,  and 
always  on  such  occasions  sought  an  interview  with 
the  king.  He  tried  to  rouse  his  conscience  ;  but 
knowing  that  the  principles  of  Christianity  would  go 
against  his  unjust  measures,  the  king  would  not 
countenance  it  in   any  way. 

The  old  king,  Tanoa,  however,  allowed  service  to 
be  held  at  Sembi,  a  settlement  near  Bau,  where 
some  of  his  own  women  resided  ;  and  soon  the 
missionary's  heart  was  cheered  by  hearing  that  Ko 
na  Malo,  Tanoa's  chief  wife,  had  been  overheard 
praying  earnestly  to  the  true  God. 

In  the  April  of  1850  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert 
sustained  a  great  loss  in  the  death  of  their  daughter 
Mary.  Five  months  after  their  arrival  in  Fiji  this 
little  one  was  born,  and  we  can  well  imagine  the  joy 
she  brought  them  in  their  loneliness.  A.nd  yet  how 
hard  it  must  have  been  to  see  their  darling  deprived 
of  so  many  comforts  and  privileges  which  she  might 
have  enjoyed  in  an  English  home,  and  doubly  so 
must  they  have  felt  it  when  sickness  came  threatening 
to  tear  their  treasure  from  their  embrace.  The  slight 
medical  knowledge,  acquired  by  Mr.  Calvert  in 
student-days  in  London,  was  of  great  service  ;  but 
no  skilled  advice  could  be  obtained  ;  there  was  not 
even  another  missionary  with  whom  they  could 
confer.  But  in  that  darksome  hour  their  trust  was 
in  God,  who  in  His  tender  compassion  heard  their 
prayer,  rebuked  the  sickness,  and  the  little  one  was 
restored.      When  scarcely  five  years  old,  Mary's  life 


94  JAMES  CALVERT. 

was  again  in  danger.  While  looking  down  the  deep 
well  on  the  mission  premises,  she  lost  her  balance, 
and  swung  forward  with  her  head  downwards.  For- 
tunately, her  brother,  two  years  younger  than  herself, 
was  standing  behind  her.  With  presence  of  mind 
beyond  his  years,  the  little  fellow  caught  hold  of  her 
leg,  and  held  on  bravely  until  their  screams  brought 
help,  and  Mary  was  rescued  from  her  perilous  position. 
And  many  heartfelt  thanks  went  up  to  God  from 
the  mission  family  that  day,  as  they  realized  His 
hand  in  this  wonderful  deliverance. 

As  the  years  passed  by,  the  little  girl,  under  the 
careful  training  of  her  godly  mother,  developed  an 
amiable  and  affectionate  disposition.  She  was 
deeply  pious,  delighting  in  prayer  and  in  reading 
the  Word  of  God.  At  the  age  of  eight  she  could 
read  the  Scriptures  in  Fijian  as  well  as  in  English, 
and  in  true  missionary  spirit  she  might  often  be 
found  trying  to  teach  the  natives  the  things  of  God, 
reading  and  rendering  into  their  own  language  pas- 
sages of  Scripture  that  had  not  yet  been  translated 
for  them.  The  wild  Fijians  learned  to  love  the  little 
maiden,  and  were  delighted  to  get  her  among  them, 
that  they  might  listen  to  her  simple  story  of  the 
Saviour's  love.  About  this  time  Mary  startled  her 
tender-hearted  mother  by  saying,  one  evening,  "  I 
quite  think  in  my  heart,  mother,  that  I  shall  die 
soon  ;  that  I  shall  not  live  long  in  this  world.  I 
think  I  shall  go  and  be  with  Jesus  in  heaven."  In 
her  own  mind,  however,  this  presentiment  did  not 
awaken  any  fear,  for  when  asked  by  her  father,  she 
said,  "  I  am  not  afraid  to  die  ;  I  love  Jesus  more 
than  I  love  you,  father.''  Happy  child — to  have 
learnt  thus  early  to  cling  so  closely  to  Jesus  as  to  be 


LABOURS  AT   VIJVA    AND   BAU.  95 

ready  to  follow  Him  through  the  Valley  of  the  Shadow 
of  Death  without  fear  !  Happy  parents — to  have 
this  blessed  assurance,  that  if  they  were  called  to 
part  with  their  beloved  daughter,  she  would  go  to 
be  with  Christ,  which  was  far  better  ! 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  were  very  anxious  to  give 
their  little  Mary  the  benefit  of  an  English  home  and 
education  ;  and  after  much  thought  and  earnest 
prayer,  they  decided  to  make  the  costly  sacrifice  of 
parting  with  her  as  soon  as  a  favourable  opportunity 
presented  itself.  Shortly  afterwards  the  widow  of 
the  Rev.  John  Hunt  was  about  to  return  to  England 
with  her  children,  and  it  was  arranged  that  little 
Mary  Calvert  should  accompany  them. 

During  the  voyage  her  parents  received  several 
letters  from  her,  each  of  which  showed  her  deep 
affection  for  them,  and  how  resigned  she  was  to 
God's  will,  looking  above  for  the  comfort  she  so 
much  needed  in  times  of  sickness  and  sorrow. 
Writing  from   Auckland,  she  says  : — 

•*  I  love  you  all  very  much.  We  arrived  safely  in 
Auckland,  and  are  now  very  comfortable  and  happy. 
Thank  the  Lord  for  all  His  mercies  !  We  left 
Nandy  on  the  Friday  after  we  left  you.  We  saw 
Viwa,  and  thought  you  would  be  looking  at  us. 
On  Tuesday  night  we  were  close  to  Kandavu. 
A  week  after — early  on  Wednesday  morning — New 
Zealand  was  in  sight  ;  but  we  were  another  week  in 
reaching  Auckland,  because  we  were  very  much  be- 
calmed. On  Sunday,  the  3rd,  it  began  to  rain  and 
blow  like  a  Fijian  cava  [storm].  We  got  to  anchor 
on  Sunday  afternoon.  The  Lord  preserved  us  in 
great  danger  on  Saturday  night,  from  running  on 
the    rocks.   .   .  .   Now,  my   dear  father  and   mother, 


96  JAMES  CALVERT. 

sisters    and    brother,   I    must    say    good-bye.      The 
Lord  bless  you  and   me  !  " 

A  year  later  Mrs.  Calvert  wrote  to  her  little  girl 
the  following  letter,  not  knowing  that  her  darling  had 
been  in  heaven  five  months  : — 

"  My  very  dear  Mary, — It  is  now  more  than 
twelve  months  since  the  JoJm  Calvin  was  said  to  be 
in  the  Downs  ;  and  this  we  read  in  a  paper  more 
than  seven  months  ago,  and  waited  patiently  for  the 
arrival  of  the  Wesley,  hoping  to  receive  letters  from 
you,  Sister  Hunt,  and  other  friends.  But,  to  our 
great,  very  great  disappointment,  we  had  not  one  ! 
We  trust  you  all  reached  home  safely,  and  are  all 
well  and  happy.  We  shall  feel  very  anxious  to  hear 
how  you  got  through  the  first  winter  ;  when  you 
write  tell  us  all  you  can.  .   .    . 

"  Oh,  my  dear  Mary,  I  wonder  if  you  have  a  new 
heart  yet,  or  not !  I  hope  you  have,  and  that  you  are 
happy  in  God.  What  a  loving  God  is  ours  !  He 
listens  to  a  little  child,  and  is  quite  ready  and  willing 
to  bless,  and  save,  and  make  her  happy.  Jesus  in- 
vites you  to  come  to  Him.  What  a  mercy !  Trust 
in  the  Lord  with  all  your  heart,  and  the  Lord  will 
bless  and  save  you. 

"  In  June  we  all  went  over  to  Bau,  and  I  and 
your  sisters  and  brother  were  there  seven  weeks. 
We  enjoyed  our  visit  very  much  ;  and  then  your 
kind  father  came  in  the  Wesley,  and  to  save  time 
and  expense,  took  us  on  by  Lakemba  to  Viwa. 

"  We  were  eight  days  with  Mrs.  Lyth  at  our  old 
house,  and  we  felt  as  if  we  had  got  home  again. 
The  old  friends  were  very  glad  to  see  us,  and  we 
felt  as  delighted  to  see  them.  We  had  a  good  mis- 
sionary meeting  there,  and  the  people  gave  willingly. 


LABOURS  AT   VI WA   AND  BAU.  97 

This  was  the  first  meeting  of  the  kind.  .  .  .  The 
old  king  has  '  Lotued,'  and  they  are  all  comfortable. 
.  .  .  There  has  been  quite  a  revival  amongst  the 
native  children  at  Lakemba,  and  Sevoki  (Wetasau's 
daughter),  Victoria,  and  some  others  are  thought  to  be 
truly  converted  to  God.  I  met  their  class,  and  was 
very  much  pleased  with  them.  There  are  about 
twenty  in  the  class.  .  .  .  The  Lord  bless  you,  my 
dear  Mary." 

Six  months  elapsed  before  the  John  Wesley  was 
sighted,  and  then  in  joyous  expectation  Mr.  Calvert 
put  off  in  a  canoe  and  boarded  her  before  she  cast 
anchor.  Very  soon,  alas  !  his  joy  was  turned  into 
sorrow,  for  he  learned  that  his  darling  child  had 
passed   away,  to  be  for  ever  with  the  Lord. 

After  landing  safely  in  England,  Mary  had  been 
brought  low  by  an  attack  of  measles.  This  was 
followed  by  severe  colds,  and  ultimately  by  con- 
gestion of  the  brain,  which  proved  too  much  for  one 
reared  in  a  tropical  climate.  During  her  last  illness, 
her  uncle,  the  Rev.  Philip  Fowler,  had  said  to  her,  in 
her  latest  conscious  moments,  "  Mary,  you  must  look 
to  Jesus,  and  trust  in  Jesus."  She  answered,  "  I 
do  ; "   and   these  were  her  last  words. 

Oh,  how  the  hearts  of  these  loving  parents  were 
bowed  with  sorrow  ;  such  a  sorrow  too  !  lightened 
only  by  the  thought  of  reunion  hereafter.  It  would 
have  been  sad  to  part  with  her  even  under  ordinary 
circumstances,  but  how  much  more  so  when  thou- 
sands of  miles  were  between  them  and  the  object 
of  their  love,  thus  preventing  them  from  ministering 
to  her  last  wants  !  Surely  the  missionary,  whoever 
he  be,  demands  our  .sympathy  and  prayers,  for  his 
are  no  common   trials  and  sorrows. 

7 


98  JAMES   CALVERT. 

About  this  time  a  piratical  tribe  called  Mbutoni 
arrived  at  Bau,  bringing  large  offerings  of  their  spoil 
as  tribute  to  King  Tanoa.  Human  flesh  must, 
according  to  custom,  be  obtained,  in  order  to  enter- 
tain these  warriors  in  proper  style.  Accordingly, 
a  party  under  Ngavindi,  the  chief  of  the  fisher- 
men, set  out  in  canoes  to  capture  enemies,  or, 
failing  these,  friends,  to  furnish  human  food  for  the 
ovens.  While  lying  in  wait  under  some  mangrove 
bushes,  a  company  of  women  were  seen  fishing ; 
of  these,  fourteen  were  seized,  and  brought  as 
captives  to  Bau.  News  of  the  capture  soon  reached 
the  mission-house  at  Viwa,  where  Mrs.  Calvert  and 
Mrs.  Lyth  were  alone  with  their  children,  their 
husbands  having  gone  to  teach  on  other  islands. 
The  hearts  of  these  noble  women  were  filled  with 
horror  at  the  thought  of  so  many  luckless  creatures 
being  sacrificed,  and  at  once  they  determined  to  lose 
no  time  in  going  over  to  Bau  in  order  to  try  and 
stay  the  slaughter. 

With  all  speed  a  canoe  was  launched,  which, 
bearing  the  missionaries'  wives,  made  for  the  scene 
of  the  feast.  Before  reaching  their  destination  they 
heard  the  sound  of  the  death-drums  and  the  firing 
of  muskets,  informing  them  that  the  horrid  butchery 
had  begun. 

On  arriving  they  were  joined  by  a  Christian 
chief,  and  made  their  way  in  haste  to  the  king's 
house,  where  no  woman  was  allowed  to  enter.  But 
forgetting  even  their  own  safety  in  their  earnest 
desire  to  save  life,  they  rushed  into  the  very  presence 
of  the  king,  and  made  their  request.  Tanoa  seemed 
stunned  by  the  audacity  of  the  bold  intruders,  and 
ordered    the     murders    to    be    stopped,      Nine    had 


LABOURS  AT   VIWA    AND  BAU. 


99 


already  perished,  but  five  remained,  and  were  set  at 
liberty  through  the  intercession  of  these  heroic 
servants  of  Jesus   Christ. 

Looking  at  the  event,  we  cannot  but  wonder  at 
the  desperate  courage  which  took  two  women,  un- 
guarded, into  the  midst  of  these  excited,  bloodthirsty 
cannibals,  with  the  intent  of  frustrating  their  cruel 
purposes,  and    also    at    the   success   which    attended 


CAPTURE   OF   WOMEN    WHILST    FISHING. 


their  enterprise.  Still,  we  remember  that  they  were 
"  strong  in  the  Lord,"  and  He  who  inspired  their 
resolute  courage  went  with  them  into  the  dangers 
they  were  venturing  to  confront,  and  influenced  the 
hearts  of  these  wild  creatures  to  grant  their 
request. 

Before  leaving  the  island,   Mrs.  Calvert   and    Mrs. 
Lyth   went    to    the    house    of    Ngavindi,    the    chief 


100  JAMES   CALVERT. 

butcher,  whom  they  found  sitting  at  ease,  evidently- 
well  satisfied  with  his  work.  They  tried  to  show 
him  the  evil  he  had  wrought  in  the  sight  of  God  ; 
and  though  they  did  not  seem  to  make  much  im- 
pression upon  him,  yet  they  were  pleased  to 
find  that  his  chief  wife,  and  the  chief  wife  of 
Thakombau,  who  were  present,  agreed  with  what 
they  were  saying,  and  tried  to  emphasize  their 
reproof.  Shortly  after  this,  Ngavindi  was  slain  in 
battle,  when  trying  to  carry  off  a  dead  body.  He 
was  laid  in  state,  before  his  burial,  on  a  raised 
platform,  with  a  dead  wife  at  his  side,  the  corpse  of 
his  mother  at  his  feet,  and  that  of  a  servant  close 
by — all  of  whom  had  been  strangled  to  do  him 
honour,  and  all   were  laid   in   one  grave. 

The  visit  of  Captain  Erskine  to  Viwa,  before 
referred  to,  took  place  only  a  few  days  after  Mrs. 
Calvert  and  Mrs.  Lyth  had  visited  Bau  on  their 
errand  of  mercy.  In  company  with  Mr.  Calvert,  he 
went  to  Bau  to  be  introduced  to  Thakombau.  This 
visit  did  much  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  the  mis- 
sionaries, as  the  Captain  showed  his  horror  and 
disgust  at  the  cannibalism  there  practised,  and  urged 
the  king  to  listen  to  the  missionaries  and  prohibit 
it.  The  Captain  thus  refers  to  the  influence  which 
Mr.  Calvert  had  gained  over  this  powerful  chief: — 

"  Without  giving  in  for  a  moment  to  any  of  the 
chief's  improper  or  unreasonable  desires,  or  attempt- 
ing to  flatter  his  vanity,  he  seemed,  on  the  contrary, 
to  lose  no  opportunity  of  administering  a  reproof  or 
expressing  disapprobation  when  any  occasion  occurred 
to  call  for  it,  treating  the  chief  at  the  same  time  with 
the  respect  due  to  his  station  and  affording  him 
no  pretext  for  an  accusation  of  arrogance  or  undue 


LABOURS  AT    VIIVA    AND   BAU.  loi 

interference.  I  remarked  with  great  pleasure  that 
in  addressing  Thakombau  Mr.  Calvert  always  made 
use  of  the  term  saka  ['  sir ']  ;  a  piece  of  courtesy  as 
creditable  to  him  as  a  gentleman  and  minister  of 
religion  to  pay  as  satisfactory  to  the  chief  to  receive. 
The  ultimate  success  of  such  a  course  of  policy,  if 
pursued  by  all  the  members  of  the  mission  towards 
a  race  attached  to  their  chiefs  and  fond  of  cere- 
monious politeness,  and  at  the  same  time  of  a  strong 
and  discriminating  intellect,  seems  certain,  and  must 


A    MIbbIONAR\    MEEIING    IN    FIJI 


effect  a  great  improvement  in  the  course  of 
a  {&\N  years  in  the  habits  and  civilization 
of  this  people." 

Early  in  the  following  year  the  mission 
received  help  from  New  South  Wales,  being  reinforced 
by  the  arrival  of  Messrs.  W.  Moore  and  J.  G.  Millard. 
On  the  day  they  reached  Vivva,  Mr.  Calvert  had  ar- 
ranged to  try  a  special  missionary  meeting.  About 
;^30  was  collected  among  the  white  residents  and  the 
missionaries,  while  the  natives,  offering  such  things 
as     they     possessed,     presented      seventy-six     mats, 


I02  JAMES   CALVERT. 

twenty-four  baskets,  three  bows  with  arrows,  seven 
pieces  of  sandal-wood,  sixteen  fans,  sixty-two  very 
superior  clube,  one  pillow,  thirty-one  spears,  eleven 
hand-clubs,  four  ladies'  dresses,  three  pieces  of  native 
cloth,  five  water-vessels,  four  combs,  and  one  pig. 
This  unlooked-for  generosity  on  the  part  of  the 
people  greatly  stimulated  the  missionary  and  his 
assistants,  who  nevertheless  were  often  sickened  by 
the  sight  of  cooked  human  bodies  and  mutilated 
limbs  made  ready  for  food,  as  was  the  case  when 
they  visited  Bau  a  few  days  later. 

For  some  time  past  the  missionaries  had  looked 
forward  to  the  death  of  the  old  king,  Tanoa,  with 
hope  and  dread.  As  we  have  already  seen,  Fijian 
custom  made  it  necessary  for  a  number  of  wives  to  be 
strangled  at  the  death  of  a  great  man.  Mr.  Calvert 
was  very  anxious  for  this  custom  to  be  broken 
through,  and  knew  that  much  would  be  done  in  this 
direction  if  only  they  could  persuade  Thakombau  to 
refrain  from  carrying  it  out  on  this  important  occa- 
sion. Hearing  that  the  end  was  near,  Mr.  Calvert 
crossed  to  Bau,  with  his  colleague  Mr.  Watsford,  to 
see  the  mighty  chief  on  the  subject.  Large  offerings 
of  whales'  teeth  were  promised  as  redemption  for  the 
women,  and  Mr.  Calvert  even  went  so  far  as  to  offer 
to  have  his  own  finger  cut  off  (Fijian  mourning)  if 
only  the  lives  of  the  women  might  be  spared. 

At  the  request  of  Mr.  Calvert,  the  Commanders  of 
H.M.  ships  of  war  on  the  station  had  entreated  the 
king  to  avoid  this  abominable  custom  when  his 
father  should  pass  away.  And  the  Commanders  of 
ships  of  war  from  the  United  States  and  Australia 
had  also  joined  heartily  in  this  request.  So  that 
every  possible  precaution  had  been  taken  beforehand. 


LABOURS  AT   VIVVA   AND  BAU.  103 

But  all  was  to  no  purpose  :  Tanoa  had  given  special 
injunction  that  his  wives  should  in  no  case  fail  to 
accompany  him  to  the  spirit  world,  and  his  son 
seemed  determined  to  see  it  carried  out. 

While  Mr.  Calvert  was  away  at  Ovalau,  the  old 
king  breathed  his  last.  Mr.  Watsford  hastened  to 
Bau,  where  he  found  that  the  work  of  death  had 
begun  within  the  house.  The  third  victim  had  been 
called  for,  when  Thakombau  caught  sight  of  the  mis- 
sionary, and  trembling  with  fear,  looked  at  him  in 
agony,  and  cried  out,  "  What  about  it,  Mr.  Watsford.?  " 
Mr.  Watsford,  with  great  difficulty,  answered,  "  Re- 
frain, sir  !  That  is  plenty  ;  two  are  dead.  Refrain! 
I  love  them  !  "  The  chief  replied,  "  We  also  love 
them.  They  are  not  many — only  five.  But  for  you 
missionaries  many  more  would  have  been  strangled." 

Just  then  their  third  victim  approached.  She  had 
sat  impatiently,  and  soon  responded  to  her  name. 
Looking  proudly  round  on  the  people  seated  in  the 
apartment,  she  pranced  up  to  the  place  of  death, 
offering  her  hand  to  Mr.  Watsford,  who  shrank  back 
in  disgust.  When  about  to  kneel  she  saw  that  they 
were  going  to  use  a  shabby  cord,  and  haughtily 
refused  to  be  strangled  except  with  a  new  cord.  All 
this  time  the  assembly  gazed  at  her  with  delight, 
gently  clapping  their  hands,  and  expressing,  in  sub- 
dued exclamations,  their  admiration  of  her  beauty 
and  pride.  She  then  bade  her  relatives  farewell,  and 
knelt  down  with  her  arms  round  one  of  her  friends. 
The  cord  was  adjusted,  and  the  large  covering  thrown 
over  her,  and  while  the  men  strained  the  cord  this 
lady  of  rank  pressed  down  her  head,  and  she  died 
without  sound  or  struggle. 
Two  more  followed. 


104  JAMES  CALVERT. 

Throughout  the  terrible  scene  there  was  no  noise 
or  excitement,  but  a  cheerful  composure  seemed  to 
possess  every  native  there  except  Thakombau,  who 
was  much  excited,  and  evidently  found  it  difficult  to 
act  his  murderous  part  before  the  face  of  God's  messen- 
ger. He  ordered  that  one  of  the  victims  should  live, 
but  she  refused,  and  her  own  son  helped  the  king 
and  the  rest  to  strangle  her.  Mr.  Watsford,  by  a 
painful  effort,  stayed  to  the  last,  protesting  against 
the  heartless  butchery  which  he  and  Mr.  Calvert  had 
so  long  striven  to  prevent. 

Afterwards  Mr.  Calvert  had  a  Bau  chief,  named 
Koroi  Mbambakolo,  staying  at  Viwa  under  his 
medical  care.  He  died.  Mr.  Calvert  followed  his 
remains  to  Bau,  and  entreated  Thakombau  kindly 
to  spare  Bongi-thiwa,  the  wufe  of  this  chief.  The 
king  said  the  missionary  was  to  go  to  the  chief's 
tribe,  the  Vusarandavis,  and  request  her  life  from 
them.  Mr.  Calvert  said  he  had  been  to  them,  and 
they  had  refused  to  grant  his  request  ;  but  an  order 
from  him — the  king — would  spare  a  fine  healthy 
woman,  to  live  and  do  good  work  for  years.  The 
woman  had  gone  to  be  bathed,  oiled,  and  dressed 
for  death.  A  messenger  was  sent  off  in  haste, 
who  reached  the  house  just  as  the  strangling  cord 
had  been  prepared.  "  The  king  has  sent  me,  at  Mr. 
Calvert's  request,  to  order  you  to  spare  the  life  of 
Bongi-thiwa,"  he  said.  The  holder  of  the  strangling 
cord  was  enraged,  and  threw  it  down,  saying,  "  Then 
I  suppose  we  are  to  die  like  nobody  now  } "  "  The 
sooner  the  better,  if  having  poor  women  strangled 
be  dying  like  somebody  !  "  This  was  the  first  victory 
and  triumph  Mr.  Calvert  had  gained  over  this 
abomination  in  the  city  of  Bau  itself !  and  that  by 


LABOURS  A2    VIWA    AND  BAU.  107 

order  of  the  king,  too !  The  success  gave  him 
heart  and  hope  for  the  future.  Whenever  he  met 
the  woman  afterwards  she  smiled  upon  him  in 
gratitude  for  her  rescue.  And  one  of  the  many- 
comforts  afforded  to  Mr.  Calvert  on  his  last  visit 
to  Fiji  was  to  meet  with  this  woman,  still  living  and 
vigorous,  more  than  thirty  years  after  the  imminent 
peril  which  had  threatened  her  life. 

An  instance  of  the  success  which  blessed  the 
labours  of  the  missionaries  on  another  and  later 
occasion  is  seen  in  the  peace  which  was  effected  be- 
tween Na  Sau  and  Ndama.  A  war,  bitter  and  cruel, 
broke  out  between  these  chiefs,  and  the  missionary, 
the  Rev.  T.  Williams,  had  at  great  personal  peril  gone 
to  make  a  reconciliation  between  the  combatants.  To 
this  end  he  effected  a  meeting  of  the  chiefs,  which 
he  describes  thus  : — 

"  I  felt  that  the  peace  of  the  district  depended  on 
this  interview,  and  prayed  that  no  untoward  event 
might  occur  to  prevent  or  mar  the  good  result  I 
anticipated  from  the  meeting.  Knowing  that  if 
either  party  detected  in  the  dark  speaking  eyes  of 
the  other  anger  or  scorn,  I  might  witness  a  scene  of 
bloodshed  instead  of  peace,  I  watched  with  deep 
anxiety  the  attitude  of  the  Na  Sau  chief  as  he  entered 
the  flat  space.  He  gently  inclined  the  upper  part  of 
his  body,  clasped  his  hands,  and  approached  Tui 
Bua,  who  was  one  of  the  party,  with  respect.  My 
heart  thrilled  with  joy  as  I  looked  on  him.  I 
felt  sure  he  was  sincere,  nor  was  I  kept  long  in 
suspense  as  to  the  reception  Tui  Bua  would  give  him. 
The  old  chief  fixed  his  piercing  eye  on  him  a  moment, 
and   he   next  sprung  on  his  feet  to  meet  him.     He 


io8  JAMES   CALVERT. 

appeared  to  endure  the  kissing  of  his  hand  by  the 
chief  of  Na  Sau,  and  withdrawing  it  from  his  Hps, 
cast  his  arms  about  the  neck  of  his  late  enemy, 
and  cordially  embraced  him.  My  own  feelings  at 
this  moment  were  unutterable,  and  the  loud  cries 
of  joy  from  several  of  the  attendants  showed 
that  I  did  not  feel  alone.  The  Tiliva  chief  (a 
Christian)  was  so  affected  that  he  cried  out,  '  We 
thank  Thee,  O  Lord,  for  thus  bringing  Thy  creatures 
into  the  way  of  life,'  and  long  and  loudly  did  he  weep 
for  gladness." 

At  the  conclusion  of  this  peacemaking  Mr.  Williams 
called  upon  one  of  his  Christian  Fijian  teachers,  named 
Ra  Hezekiah,  to  address  the  assembly  ;  and  this  he 
did  in  words  which  will  well  bear  repeating,  coming, 
as  they  did,  from  the  mouth  of  one  so  recently  a 
heathen.      He  began  by  saying — 

"  This  is  a  good  day ;  we  have  long  prayed  that 
we  might  see  this  day  ;  now  we  see  it,  and  are  glad. 
To-day  we  see  the  great  power  of  God.  Man  could 
not  do  what  we  see  to-day.  We  Fijians  are  a  per- 
verse people  ;  we  are  Fijians,  and  we  know  that,  of 
all  crooked,  obstinate  things,  the  mind  of  a  Fijian  is 
most  crooked  and  most  obstinate.  If  we  have  an 
enemy,  we  do  not  like  to  be  one  with  him  ;  we  do 
not  wish  to  be  reconciled  to  him.  If  some  chief  of 
great  power  had  this  day  come  to  unite  us  he  could 
not  have  done  so  ;  certainly  not — certainly  not — 
certainly  not.  If  some  great  chief  of  Britain  had 
come  amongst  us  to-day,  to  dissuade  us  from  war 
and  make  us  one,  he  could  not  have  done  so.  The 
Fijian  mind  defies  the  power  of  man.  But  what  do 
we  see  to-day  .-•  We  see  those  who  the  other  day 
were  full   of   bad    feeling   towards  each    other,   and 


LABOURS  AT   VIJVA   AND  BAU.  109 

shooting  at  each  other,  sitting  together  in  peace  ; 
hatred  is  taken  away,  and  we  who  so  lately  had  each 
different  views  are  now  united,  and  our  minds  are  as 
the  mind  of  one  man, 

"  Ask  no  more,  '  What  can  the  Lotu  do  ? '  after 
what  our  eyes  see  this  day.  The  Lotu  is  of  God,  and 
whatever  we  now  see  is  the  work  of  God.  He  alone 
is  almighty.  In  this  age  we  see  also  that  God  is 
love.  He  has  showed  His  love  to  us  by  giving  us 
His  book,  to  tell  us  of  the  Saviour,  and  to  teach  us 
the  way  to  serve  God.  And  to  help  us  to  under- 
stand what  we  read,  He  has  sent  His  minister  to  our 
land.  Great  is  the  love  of  God.  We  Fijians  are 
born  in  darkness  and  error  ;  v/e  are  reared  in  error  ; 
it  is  our  nature  to  err  ;  so  that  it  is  important  that 
we  have  those  amongst  us  who  can  direct  us.  A 
father  who  loves  his  children  tells  them  what  they 
ought  not  to  do,  and  he  tells  them  what  they  ought 
to  do.  Mr.  Williams  is  a  father  to  us.  If  we 
take  a  step  without  advice,  it  is  a  wrong  step  ;  but 
if  it  is  approved  by  him  we  are  no  more  double- 
minded,  but  go  fearlessly  on,  and  we  find  that  we 
are  doing  what  is  right ;  but  our  own  plans  lead  us 
wrong,  and  the  end  of  them  is  pain  and  trouble. 
Great  is  our  joy  at  this  our  meeting.  You,  our 
friends  of  Ndama  and  Na  Sau,  have  come  into  a 
good  way.  Never  go  from  it.  Grasp  firmly  what 
you  have  now  taken  hold  of  ;  the  end  thereof  is  life 
— life  now,  and  life  for  ever." 

Many  were  the  subsequent  journeys  the  mis- 
sionaries made  to  Bau  to  try  and  prevent  acts  of 
bloodshed  and  cruelty  ;  but  while  still  prosperous, 
Thakombau  continued   to  turn   a  deaf  ear  to  their 


JAMES   CALVERT. 


instructions,  promising  to  consider  the  claims  of 
religion  when  he  had  subdued  all  his  enemies.  Wars 
followed,  in  which  the  proud  king  was  gradually- 
humbled  ;    reverse    followed    reverse,    until    his   very 

life  was  in  danger  of 
being  taken,  plots  having 
been  formed  by  the  resi- 
dent white  population  at 
Ovalau  to  kill  Thakom- 
bau  and  invest  his  power 
in  Mara,  one  of  his 
rebellious  chiefs,  and  the 
King  of  Levuka,  whom 
they  meant  should  rule 
as  these  white  traders 
wished  when  the  scheme 
was  accomplished.  At 
this  critical  state  of  affairs 
Thakombau  was  afflicted 
with  a  painful  disease, 
and  Mr.  Calvert,  faithful 
to  the  opportunity,  tried 
to  show  that  God  was 
thus  dealing  with  him  in 
order  to  bring  him  to 
submission.  While  he 
still  hesitated,  a  letter  ar- 
rived from  King  George 
of  Tonga,  warning  him  of 
further  danger,  and  urging  him  not  to  delay,  but  to 
accept  Christianity  at  once.  This  advice  was  most 
opportune,  and  in  a  few  days  he  made  up  his  mind 
to  renounce  heathenism. 

It  was  arranged   that   Mr.  Calvert  and  Mr.  Water- 


KING    GEORGE   OF   TONGA. 


LABOURS  AT   VITVA    AND  BAU.  in 

house,  the  missionary  then  resident  at  Bau,  should 
conduct  a  service  on  April  30th,  1854,  in  the  great 
Strangers'  House.  The  chief  ordered  that  the  big 
death-drums,  which  only  ten  days  previously  had  been 
beaten  to  call  the  people  to  the  temples  for  a  cannibal 
feast,  should  be  sounded  as  a  signal  for  assembling 
to  worship  the  true  God.  More  than  three  hundred 
had  responded  to  the  call,  when  the  Vu  ni  Valu 
(Root  of  War)  entered,  in  company  with  his  many 
wives,  children,  and  relatives,  and  knelt  in  adoration 
of  the  Christians'  God.  We  can  scarcely  imagine 
the  joy  of  the  faithful  missionaries  as  they  took  part 
in  this  service.  One  of  the  most  important  days 
in  the  history  of  Fiji,  the  day  for  which  they  had 
toiled,  and  hoped,  and  prayed,  had  arrived  at  last. 
They  had  gone  forth  weeping,  bearing  the  precious 
seed,  and  now  they  were  permitted  to  return  with 
joy,   bringing  their  sheaves   with   them. 

Thakombau  showed  his  sincerity  by  afterwards 
insisting  upon  the  Sabbath  being  strictly  kept,  and  he 
was  also  diligent  in  his  attendance  at  the  preaching- 
services  and  prayer-meetings.  His  desire  to  learn 
to  read  became  very  strong,  and  as  his  little  boy  of 
seven  had  already  acquired  that  art,  he  at  once 
became  teacher  to  his  parent ;  who,  however,  taxed 
his  powers  of  endurance  to  such  an  extent  that  he 
would  sometimes  fall  asleep  in  the  midst  of  the 
lesson,  which  was  resumed  after  he  had  been  in- 
vigorated by  a  nap.  But  to  commence  to  learn  to 
read  at  the  age  of  fifty  was  no  light  task  ;  and 
although  much  perseverance  was  displayed  on  the 
part  of  both  teachers  and  scholar  alike,  poor  Thakom- 
bau did  not  accomplish  much.  Strange  to  say,  the 
king  was  never  heard   to   speak   in  English.      When 


112 


JAMES   CALVERT. 


asked  on  one  occasion  to  explain  this  fact,  he  simply 
said,  "  I   have  heard   Englishmen  speak   Fijian,   and 


THAKOMBAU   LEARNING   TO   READ. 


that  is  quite  sufficient !  "     The  year  1857  was  marked 
by  the  baptism  of  Thakombau.      During  the  interval 


LABOURS  AT   VIWA   AND  BAU.  113 

which  had  elapsed  between  his  profession  of  Christi- 
anity and  this  date,  he  had  been  under  careful 
training  and  instruction,  and  now  he  gave  satisfactory 
evidence  that  he  was  thoroughly  in  earnest.  This 
was  further  evidenced  by  the  fact  of  his  being  willing 
to  dismiss  his  many  wives,  thereby  sacrificing  great 
wealth  and  influence.  He  was  publicly  married  to 
his  principal  wife,  the  mother  of  several  children, 
Andi  Lydia  Samanunu. 

The  baptismal  scene  is  thus  described  by  Mr. 
Waterhouse  :  "  In  the  afternoon  the  king  was  publicly 
baptized.  In  the  presence  of  God  he  promised  to 
'  renounce  the  devil  and  all  his  works,  the  pomps 
and  vanities  of  this  wicked  world,  and  all  the  sinful 
lusts  of  the  flesh.'  He  engaged  to  believe  all  the 
articles  of  the  Christian  faith,  and  solemnly  vowed, 
in  the  name  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  '  to  keep  God's  holy 
will  and  commandments,  and  to  walk  in  the  same  all 
the  days  of  his  life.'  In  accordance  with  my  request, 
previously  conveyed,  the  king  then  addressed  the 
assembly.  It  must  have  cost  him  many  a  struggle 
to  stand  up  before  his  court,  his  ambassadors,  and 
the  flower  of  his  people,  to  confess  his  former  sins." 

In  the  past  he  had  considered  himself  a  god, 
and  had  received  honours  almost  divine  from  his 
people  ;  now  he  humbled  himself,  and  adored  his  great 
Creator  and  merciful  Protector.  And  what  a  con- 
gregation he  had  !  Husbands  whose  wives  he  had 
dishonoured  !  widows  whose  husbands  he  had  slain  ! 
sisters  whose  relatives  had  been  strangled  by  his 
orders  !  relatives  whose  friends  he  had  eaten  !  and 
children  the  descendants  of  those  he  had  murdered, 
and  who  had  vowed  to  avenge  the  wrongs  inflicted 
on  their  fathers  ! 

8 


114  JAMES   CALVERT. 

A  thousand  stony  hearts  heaved  with  fear  and 
astonishment  as  Thakombau  gave  utterance  to  the 
following  sentiments  :  "  I  have  been  a  bad  man.  I 
disturbed  the  country.  The  missionaries  came  and 
invited  mc  to  embrace  Christianity,  but  I  said  to 
them,  '  I  will  continue  to  fight.'  God  has  singularly 
preserved  my  life.  At  one  time  I  thought  that  I 
had  myself  been  the  instrument  of  my  own  preserva- 
tion ;  but  now  I  know  that  it  was  the  Lord's  doing. 
I  desire  to  acknowledge  Him  as  the  only  and  the  true 
God.  I  have  scourged  the  world  !  "  He  was  deeply 
affected,  and  spoke  with  great  diffidence. 

The  king  chose  the  name  of  Ebenezer,  as  an 
expression  of  acknowledgment  of  the  help  of  God 
vouchsafed  to  him  from  the  hands  of  his  enemies. 
The  queen  was  baptized  in  the  name  of  Lydia.  She 
was  neatly  attired  in  an  appropriate  dress  and 
mantle  furnished  by  the  kindness  of  some  ladies  in 
Adelaide,  South  Australia. 

From  this  time  the  king  took  no  retrograde  step. 
All  his  energy  and  resolution  were  bent  upon  the 
good  of  his  people  ;  and  the  Rev.  J.  Nettleton,  who 
for  seven  years  was  his  chaplain,  says  he  never 
met  with  a  more  devoted,  earnest,  and  consistent 
Christian. 

Thakombau's  troubles  did  not  end  with  his  re- 
nunciation of  heathenism.  He  sent  messengers  to 
the  King  of  Rewa  desiring  to  make  peace,  but 
received  answer  that  he  should  not  be  at  peace  till 
he  had  killed  and  eaten  the  King  of  Bau.  This 
insult  did  not  move  Thakombau  to  anger  or  revenge. 
He  expressed  his  confidence  in  God's  power  to  de- 
liver him,  and  showed  his  forgiving  spirit  by  sparing 
the  life  of  a  spy,  who  was  taken  in  the  act  of  trying 


LABOURS  AT   VI WA    AND  BAU.  115 

to  get  one  of  the  Bauan  towns  to  rebel  against  its 
king. 

Mr.  Calvert's  duties  frequently  took  him  to  Ovalau, 
where  Thakombau  had  many  enemies ;  and  his 
avowed  friendship  to  that  chief  made  him  the  object 
of  much  suspicion,  and  sometimes  endangered  his 
life.  One  of  these  adventures  he  graphically  describes 
in  a  letter  to  the  General  Missionary  Secretaries, 
dated  Viwa,  July  26th,  1854: — 

"  We  are  still  surrounded  by  war,  which  approaches 
nearer  to  us.  The  end,  I  judge,  draws  near.  It  is 
remarkable  that  all  parties  think  about  religion,  and 
desire  to  have  missionaries  or.  teachers.  The  great 
enemy  is  manifestly  much  dissatisfied  with  the  state 
of  light  and  feeling,  and  is  bent  upon  destroying 
what  he  cannot  much  longer  peaceably  enjoy.  I 
have  had  much  sailing  during  the  year.  On  the 
27th  of  May  I  went  to  Levuka  (chief  town  on 
Ovalau)  in  my  boat,  to  meet  an  American  captain, 
who  had  brought  us  some  timber  and  goods,  and  in 
order  that  I  might  take  the  services  in  native  and 
English  on  the  following  day.  On  my  arrival,  the 
mountaineers  who  effected  Elijah  Verani's  death 
wished  to   kill   two  of  my  boat's   crew. 

"■June  \st.  The  Levuka  chief  wished  me  not  to 
sail  till  after  the  Moturiki  fight,  which  took  place  on 
the  3  I  St.  This  was  an  aggressive  movement  from 
Ovalau  against  an  island  belonging  to  Bau.  One 
Levukan  fell  ;  several  were  wounded.  One  Bau 
man  was  killed  and  brought  to  Levuka.  In  the 
morning  Tui  Levuka  and  a  chief  of  Bau,  who  is  on- 
his  side,  came  for  me,  that  we  might  go  and  bury 
him.  I  went  and  begged  two  mats,  in  which  he  was 
wrapped.     The  body  had  been  anchored  in  the  water 


ii6  JAMES   CALVERT. 

all  night.  The  fishes  had  eaten  his  head  and  neck, 
and  all  the  flesh  off  his  left  leg  and  foot.  The  Levu- 
kan  was  also  buried  at  Moturiki.  In  this  respect  a 
great  change  has  come  over  the  place. 

"  <StJi.  In  going  to  Viwa  I  desired  to  call  at 
Moturiki,  which  I  had  also  attempted  to  do  the  last 
time  I  passed  on  to  Viwa.  Besides  wishing  to  speak 
with  them  about  Christianity,  I  now  desired  to  warn 
them  of  danger  near,  Tui  Levuka  having  told  me 
that  Moturiki  would  certainly  be  destroyed,  as  the 
mountaineers  would  go  by  night.  We  found  that 
the  tide  did  not  serve  well  for  landing  ;  we  therefore 
proceeded  towards  the  entrance  leading  to  Viwa. 
One  of  my  boat's  crew  observed  a  man  on  the 
Moturiki  beach  beckoning  for  us,  and  told  me.  I 
desired  one  of  my  Rotumans  to  go  on  shore,  as  it 
was  a  long  distance  for  me  to  wade.  He  got  in  the 
water,  and  was  proceeding  towards  the  shore,  when 
he  observed  several  persons  come  out  from  among 
the  cocoa-nut  trees.  He  was  afraid,  and  said,  '  They 
are  from  Lovoni,  and  will  kill  me.'  I  requested  him 
to  come  into  the  boat.  The  man  continued  to  call. 
He  was  dressed,  which  led  me  to  think  that  he  was 
a  man  from  Bau  who  had  '  Lotued.'  I  did  not  like 
to  let  the  opportunity  pass,  and  immediately  got  on 
my  old  water-shoes.  I  did  not  believe  them  to  be 
Lovonians,  but  said  to  the  crew  that  should  I  be 
killed  they  were  to  return  to  Levuka,  so  that  Tui 
Levuka  might  get  my  body.  As  I  proceeded 
towards  the  shore  many  more  persons  made  their 
appearance,  some  running  fast  towards  me  in  two 
directions.  As  they  neared  me  they  looked  very 
fierce,  and  made  gestures  indicative  of  evil  intentions 
towards  me.      I  could  not  get  to  the  boat  ;  I  therefore 


LABOURS  AT   VIIVA    AND  BAU.  119 

went  on  towards  the  shore.      One  was  swifter  than 
the    rest,    and    came  near,    with    his    gun    uplifted, 
to  strike  me.      I   expostulated  with  him.      Quickly 
several  were  up  with   me,  some  of  whom  had  clubs 
uplifted   to  club  me,  some  with  hatchets,  some  with 
spears  laid   on   in  a  position  to  throw.      One  came 
very  near,  with  a  musket  pointed  at  me,  with  des- 
perate looks.      I   trembled,  but  protested  loudly  and 
firmly  that  they  ought  not  to  kill  me  ;  that  in  me 
there  was  no  cause  of  death  from  them  ;  that  their 
killing  me  would  be  greatly   to  their  disgrace.       I 
was    surrounded    by    upwards   of  a   hundred.     The 
features   of   one   I    recognized,   and    hoped    he  was 
friendly.      He  took  hold  of  me,  recognizing  me  as 
the  husband  of  the  lady  of  the  wooden    house   at 
Viwa,  who  had   frequently  purchased  food  of  them, 
and  treated  them  kindly,  and  he  said  I  should  live. 
I  clung  to  him,  and  disputed  for  my  life  with  those 
who  clamoured  for  my  death.     Another  man's  face, 
through  a  thick  covering  of  soot,  exhibited  features 
familiar  to  me  ;  but  a  fearful-looking  battle-axe  he 
held  in  his  hand  attracted  my  eye.      However,  I  laid 
hold  of  him,  and  advised  and  urged  them  not  to  kill 
me.      Thus  I  was  between  two  who  might  be  friendly. 
I  told   my  name,   my  work,   my  labours  in  various 
ways,  again  and  again,  on   their  behalf;  my  having 
offered  Tui  Levuka  a  very  large  looking-glass  if  he 
would  let    them  alone,   my  having   entreated   Mara 
and  the  mountaineers  not  to  attack  them,  and   my 
preventing  an  intended  attack. 

"  Matters  were  in  a  hopeful  state,  when  a  very 
ugly  man  drew  near  with  great  vehemence.  Many 
had  avowed  themselves  in  my  favour.  He  appeared 
resolutely  determined,  in  spite  of  opposition,  to  take 


120  JAMES   CALVERT. 

away  my  life.  He  was  extremely  ferocious,  but  his 
arms  were  seized  and  held  by  several.  He  struggled 
hard  for  a  length  of  time  to  get  his  musket  to  bear 
on  me,  which  indeed  he  once  or  twice  managed,  but 
it  was  warded  off  before  he  could  fire.  At  length 
his  rage  subsided.  All  then  consented  to  my  living. 
But  their  thirst  for  killing  had  got  up,  and  as  they 
could  not  kill  me,  they  wished  me  to  return  towards 
the  boat,  intending  to  accompany  me,  hoping  to  get 
one  or  more  of  my  natives.  I  refused  to  go,  and 
persisted  in  walking  towards  the  shore,  led  by 
two.  One  untied  my  neckcloth  and  took  it.  They 
pulled  my  coat,  felt  me,  and  I  fully  expected  to  be 
stripped.  My  trousers  were  wet  and  heavy.  I  was 
weak  with  talking  and  disputing  with  them,  indeed 
quite  hoarse.  As  we  still  went  on  in  the  sea,  they 
commenced  their  death-song,  always  sung  as  they 
drag  along  the  bodies  of  enemies  slain.  I  feared  that 
this  might  increase  their  rage,  and  desired  to  stop  it. 
It  was  most  grating  to  my  feelings,  and  I  stood  still, 
and  entreated  them  to  desist.  After  a  short  time 
they  did  so,  and  we  proceeded  to  the  beach.  Those 
who  had  run  to  destroy  me  departed  towards  their 
own  town. 

"  I  found  Ratu  Vuki,  a  chief  of  Bau,  had  just 
arrived.  He  was  vexed  with  those  who  had  treated 
me  so,  and  would  have  punished  them.  I  begged 
he  would  not.  I  desired  him  to  send  me  to  Viwa 
in  a  canoe,  as  I  was  sure  Mrs.  Calvert  would  be 
anxious.  My  boys  had  seen  the  danger  to  which 
I  was  exposed.  They  also  were  pursued  by  the 
natives,  and  hastened  to  Viwa.  Mrs.  Calvert  felt 
much  alarmed  at  the  intelligence,  but  feared  to 
send   the  boat  to  inquire,  lest  my  death  might   be 


LABOURS  AT   VIWA   AND  BAU.  121 

followed  by  the  killing  of  those  she  might  send. 
She  also  hoped  that  I  was  alive,  thinking  that  the 
Moturiki  people  would  not  kill  me.  Ratu  Luki 
Matanambamba  was  very  kind  and  very  ready  to 
go,  though  it  was  thought  that  my  death  might  be 
the  means  of  vukivnki  (turning)  Moturiki  to  Ovalau 
against  Bau,  in  which  case  those  who  went  would 
have  been  in  danger.  At  midnight  I  reached  Viwa 
in  the  canoe,  and  found  that  my  wife  had  borne  up 
well,  but  had  just  given  her  consent  to  the  going  to 
look  after  me, 

"  During  the  whole  of  the  attack  on  me  the  Lord 
blessed  me  with  great  presence  of  mind  and  con- 
siderable firmness,  to  stand  up,  proceed,  dispute 
with  them,  and  protest  against  their  taking  my  life. 
My  trust  was  in  the  Lord.  He  was  my  help  and 
Deliverer.  It  appeared  to  me  very  probable  that 
my  course  and  my  ministry  were  about  to  be  ended, 
yet  I  was  comforted  in  the  assurance  that 

'  They  could  not  yet  my  life  devour, 
Safe  in  the  hollow  of  His  hand.' 

"  While  looking  at  the  instruments  of  death, 
which  were  held  over  me  and  levelled  at  me,  I  felt 
that  my  life  was  still  in  His  hands,  and  could  only 
be  taken  by  His  permission.  My  prayer  was  to 
the  God  of  my  life.  I  thought  that  the  natives 
might  be  thereby  led  to  deep  consideration  of  the 
folly  and  evil  of  war,  and  be  led  to  terms  of  peace. 
I  gave  myself  afresh  to  the  Lord,  feeling  willing 
and  desirous  to  glorify  Him  whether  by  life  or 
death.  I  thought  of  my  family,  and  committed  my 
children  in  England,  New  Zealand,  and  Fiji,  and 
my    much   loved   and   faithful  wife,  to    the    Lord,  in 


122  JAMES   CALVERT. 

whom  she  trusted.  I  thought  of  the  mangled  body 
of  the  murdered  Williams,  and  thought  of  my  own, 
likely  to  be  mangled  and  abused  to  the  same  extent; 
but  I  felt  confident  that  I  should  not  be  eaten,  even 
in  cannibal  Fiji,  which  was  some  relief  to  my  mind. 
And  then  I  felt  very  thankful  to  Him  who  had  pre- 
served me  to  labour  more  than  fifteen  years,  in  which 
I  had  been  employed  in  rough  and  dangerous  work. 
It  seemed  to  me  an  appropriate  end  to  my  labour 
in  Fiji.  But  how  gracious,  how  wise,  how  powerful 
my  Deliverer !  Again  I  am  rescued,  and  privileged 
with   restoration   to   my   family   and   labours." 

God  overruled  this  dangerous  encounter  for  the 
furtherance  of  His  kingdom,  for  after  a  time  Mr. 
Calvert  visited  Ndravuni  and  Koroi  Rokoseru,  places 
whence  the  people  who  clamoured  for  his  life  had 
come,  and  in  acknowledgment  of  their  having 
spared  him,  he  took  presents  which  greatly  pleased 
them.  Thus  a  friendly  feeling  was  established 
which  paved  the  way  for  a  native  teacher  to  settle 
there  ;  and  a  few  months  later,  when  Bau  would  have 
been  vanquished  by  its  enemies,  this  friendly  relation- 
ship with  Viwa  led  Ndravuni  and  Koroi  Rokoseru  to 
remain  firm  to  their  allegiance  to  Bau,  and  thus 
much  bloodshed  and  destruction  were  prevented. 
Thwarted  at  this  point,  the  enemy  tried  to  attack 
Bau  from  another,  and  Thakombau's  life  was  in 
great  danger,  not  only  from  these  enemies,  but  from 
some  of  his  own  chiefs,  who  had  suffered  wrongs  at 
his  hands  in  days  gone  by,  and  who  now  hailed  with 
delight  the  opportunity  to  avenge  them.  Many  of 
these  conspiracies  were  quelled  by  the  influence, 
wisdom,  and  tact  of  the  missionary. 


LABOURS  AT    VITVA    AND   BAU.  123 

On  one  occasion  Mr.  Calvert  was  suddenly 
summoned  to  Bau,  and  found  that  the  king  and 
also  the  mission  premises  were  in  imminent  peril 
from  a  chief  named  Koli,  who  had  been  bribed  by 
the  King  of  Rewa  and  others  to  rebel  and  assassinate 
Thakombau.  Returning  to  Viwa,  the  missionary 
found  this  chief  waiting  to  see  him.  When  taxed 
with  the  crime  of  being  employed  on  this  business, 
Koli  assured  Mr.  Calvert  that  he  meant  no  harm. 
However,  the  missionary  was  too  well  acquainted 
with  Fijian  duplicity  to  believe  it,  and  let  him  know 
that  such  was  the  case,  trying  at  the  same  time 
to  show  him  the  sin  of  causing  bloodshed  and 
strife,  which  might  eventually  end  in  his  own  des- 
truction. Besides  this,  the  argument  was  backed 
up  by  a  promised  present  of  twelve  dozen  hatchets 
and  ten  wedge-axes  if  he  would  withdraw  from  his 
compact  with  Thakombau's  enemies.  "This  present," 
said  Mr.  Calvert,  "  is  a  bird  in  the  hand,  a  heavy 
one  ;  whereas  many  of  the  canoes  promised  by  the 
enemy  are  yet  living  in  the  forest ;  and  besides,  your 
personal  danger  is  considerable."  This  interview  was 
owned  and  blessed  by  God,  for  Koli  went  home,  and 
forthwith  dismissed  his  men. 

While  avoiding  war  as  much  as  possible,  the  Bau 
people  did  not  give  in  to  the  enemy,  who  after 
a  time  began  to  think  that  it  might  be  the  Christian's 
God  who  was  preserving  them  in  so  many  trying 
vicissitudes.  Just  when  things  seemed  at  their 
worst  deliverance  came.  Early  in  1855  the  King 
of  Rewa  died  very  suddenly,  and  again  Thakombau 
made  overtures  of  peace,  which  were  ultimately 
ratified  and  settled  on  board  H.M.S.  Herald,  lying 
off  Ovalau.     Here  Thakombau,  Mara,  and  Tui  Levuka 


124 


JAMES   CALVERT. 


met,  and  the  peace  was  confirmed,  the  King  of  Bau 
reproving  the  others  for  their  folly  in  trying  to  keep 
up  war,  and  advising  them  to  look  to  the  well-being 
of  their  people. 

Peace  having  been  established,  the  missionary  was 


KING   THAKOMBAU. 


able  to  see  much  fruit  of  his  labour  in  this  district,  prior 
to  his  departure  for  England  after  seventeen  years' 
sojourn  in  Fiji.  This  took  place  in  November,  1855. 
Thakombau  lived  a  consistent  Christian  life  for 
many  years,  and  his  last  act  as  king  was  to  cede 
Fiji  to  the  Queen  of  Great  Britain  and   Ireland,  in 


LABOURS  AT   VIIVA   AND  BAU.  125 

October,  1874.  On  this  occasion  he  desired  his 
Prime  Minister,  Mr.  Thurston  (now  Sir  John  B. 
Thurston,  Governor  of  Fiji,  and  High  Commissioner 
of  the  Western  Pacific),  to  present  his  war-club  to 
Queen  Victoria.  Mr.  Thurston  interpreted  the  king's 
words  as  follows  :  — 

"  Your  Excellency, — Before  finally  ceding  his 
country  to  Her  Majesty  the  Queen  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland,  the  king  desires,  through  your  Excellency, 
to  give  Her  Majesty  the  only  thing  he  possesses  that 
may  interest  her.  The  king  gives  Her  Majesty  his 
old  and  favourite  war-club,  the  former,  and  until 
lately  the  only  known  law  of  Fiji. 

"  In  abandoning  club  law,  and  adopting  the  forms 
and  principles  of  civilized  society,  he  laid  by  his  old 
weapon,  and  covered  it  with  the  emblems  of  peace. 
Many  of  his  people,  whole  tribes,  died  and  passed 
away  under  the  old  law,  but  hundreds  of  thousands 
will  survive  to  learn  and  enjoy  the  newer  and  better 
state  of  things. 

The  king  adds  only  a  few  words.  With  this 
emblem  of  the  past  he  sends  his  love  to  Her  Majesty, 
saying  that  he  fully  confides  in  her  and  in  her 
children,  who,  succeeding,  shall  become  Kings  of  Fiji, 
to  exercise  a  watchful  control  over  the  welfare  of  his 
children  and  people,  and  who,  having  survived  the 
barbaric  law  and  age,  are  now  submitting  themselves, 
under  Her  Majesty's  rule,  to  civilization." 

Thakombau's  magnificent  club  and  yanggona  bowl 
were  graciously  received  by  the  Queen,  and  have 
since  been  placed  in  the  British  Museum. 

The  drinking  o{ yanggona^  which  is  the  native  grog, 
takes  place  on  all  important  occasions,  and  forms  a 
very  interesting  ceremony.      Those  who  are  to  take 


126 


JAMES   CALVER2. 


part  in  it  sit  round  on  mats.  A  large  wooden  bowl 
with  four  legs  is  then  brought  in,  and  placed  in  the 
centre  of  the  company.  It  is  often  beautifully  carved 
and  polished,  and  has  a  bloom  on  it  like  that  on  a 
grape. 

The  yanggona  root  is  next  brought  in,  and  after 
being  scraped  and  cleaned,  is  cut  in  small  pieces,  and 
handed   round  to  the  young  men   appointed  to  chew 


it.  On  some  occasions, 
however,  the  yanggona 
root  is  prepared  by  grating  instead  of  chewing,  which 
certainly  seems  preferable  to  us,  but  connoisseurs 
tell  us  that  the  flavour  is  not  nearly  so  good  as  when 
it  has  gone  through  the  chewing  process. 

While  the  preparation  is  going  on  the  rest  of  the 
company  solemnly  clap  their  hands  and  sing  their 
quaint  wild  choruses.  When  the  chewing  process 
is  complete,  each  deposits  his  lump  of  finely  chewed 


LABOURS  AT   VI WA    AND  BAU.  127 

fibre  in  the  yanggona  bowl,  and  it  is  passed  to  the 
chief  for  inspection.  If  he  approves  of  it  he  re- 
plies in  a  low  tone,  "  Loba  "  ("  Mix  it ").  Water  is 
then  gradually  poured  on,  after  which  the  fibre  is 
wrung  out  through  a  piece  of  hibiscus  fibre,  which 
is  a  kind  of  fine  netting.  It  is  now  ready  for 
use,  and  is  first  handed  to  the  chief,  after  which  all 
the  others  drink  in  order  of  precedence,  with  evident 
satisfaction. 

The  fluid  produced  by  chewing  and  wringing  the 
yanggona  root  is  of  a  yellowish  colour,  and  is  said  to 
taste  like  rhubarb  and  magnesia,  flavoured  with  sal- 
volatile,  and  has  much  the  same  effect  as  this  latter 
drug.  It  is  said  to  be  so  pleasantly  stimulating 
that  even  white  settlers  drink  it  habitually.  When 
taken  in  excess  it  paralyses  the  muscles,  and  leaves 
the  inebriate  lying  helplessly  on  the  ground,  yet 
perfectly  conscious  of  all  that  is  passing  on  around 
him. 

Sir  Arthur  Hamilton  Gordon,  the  first  Governor 
of  Fiji,  made  it  law  that  toasts  should  be  drunk  in 
this  beverage  on  all  public  occasions,  and  this  was 
the  means,  to  some  extent,  of  checking  the  evils  of 
intemperance  among  the  natives.  Consequently  we 
find  that  our  own  English  princes,  when  in  Fiji, 
were  disposed  to  conform  to  native  etiquette,  and 
observe  this  ceremony. 

It  was  arranged  that  Thakombau  should  receive  a 
pension  of  i^  1,5  00,  and  a  present  of  ;^  1,000  to  buy 
a  much- coveted  little  vessel  for  his  own  use  ;  and 
that  in  the  event  of  his  death,  his  queen,  Audi 
Lydia,  should  receive  i^  1,000  a  year  for  her  life. 
She  passed  away,  however,  in  perfect  peace,  in  1881, 
to  the  sincere  grief  of  her  royal  consort.     Thakombau's 


128  JAMES   CALVERT. 

last  days  were  his  best.  Peace  being  established, 
he  gave  himself  up  to  work  for  God  in  the  Church 
and  for  the  good  of  his  people.  His  death  took 
place  in  February,  1883,  and  resulted  from  the  rupture 
of  an  abscess. 

Speaking  of  his  religious  life,  the  Fiji  Times  says, 
"  The  Wesleyan  Church  loses  in  him  one  of  its 
most  distinguished  members.  His  influence  on  the 
side  of  Christianity,  and  of  good  in  general,  has 
been  greater  than  that  of  any  chief,  or  combination 
of  chiefs,  throughout  the  islands.  Since  his  conver- 
sion and  baptism  he  has  led  a  worthy  life  ;  and 
eminent  before  for  tyranny,  licentiousness,  and  dis- 
regard of  human  life,  he  has  since  been  free  from 
reproach,  chaste  in  conduct,  and  considerate  of  the 
people.  Thakombau  saw  his  kingdom  gathered  into 
one  compact  whole.  There  is  little  doubt  that  but 
for  his  assistance  the  work  of  reconciling  the  natives 
to  English  supremacy  would  have  been  more  difficult 
and  prolonged." 

This  testimony,  from  a  secular  source,  shows  how 
real  and  lasting  was  this  man's  conversion  to  God. 
For  three  months  after  his  death  his  body  lay  in 
state,  and  was  visited  by  large  numbers  of  people, 
European  as  well  as  Fijian.  At  his  burial  several 
old  Fijian  customs  were  observed.  A  great  funeral 
feast  was  prepared,  and  the  house  in  which  he  died 
was  torn  down  and  cast  into  the  sea ;  while  his 
large  double  canoe  was  drawn  up  on  the  beach, 
never  to  be  used  again. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

SUBSEQUENT    LABOURS. 

"  Summoned  my  labours  to  renew, 
And  glad  to  act  my  part, 
Lord,  in  Thy  name  my  work  I  do, 
And  with  a  single  heart. 

"  End  of  my  every  action  Thou, 
In  all  things  Thee  I  see  : 
Accept  my  hallowed  labour  now  ; 
I  do  it  unto  Thee." 

EARLY  in  the  spring  of  1856  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Calvert  arrived  in  England,  having  stayed 
some  months  in  Sydney  so  as  to  avoid  the 
English  winter.  Their  two  eldest  children  came 
with  them.  Three  younger  ones  were  left  in  the 
colony  in  order  to  prepare  them  for  further  change 
of  climate,  or  to  await  the  return  of  their  parents. 
This  visit  to  their  native  land  was  not  for  recreation 
and  rest  alone;  the  needs  of  Fiji  were  too  pressing 
for  that,  and  its  interests  too  deeply  engraven  upon 
the  hearts  of  these  devoted  missionaries  for  them  to 
cease  to  toil  in  its  behalf.  The  translation  of  the 
whole  Bible  was  now  complete,  and  it  had  been 
arranged  that  Mr.  Calvert  should  return  to  England, 
so  that  he  might  revise  this  edition  and  see  it 
through  the  press. 

9 


130  JAMES    CALVERT. 

When  Mr.  Cross  and  Mr.  Cargill  first  settled  in 
Fiji  there  was  no  written  language  of  the  people. 
Before  leaving  Tonga,  however,  they  had  arranged 
an  alphabet  with  the  aid  of  a  Fijian  teacher  who 
was  to  accompany  them  to  Fiji,  Their  knowledge 
of  Tonga n  was  also  a  great  help  in  this  work,  as 
some  slight  similarity  exists  in  all  these  Oceanic 
tongues.  A  "  First  Book  "  was  also  printed  at  the 
Tongan  press,  while  a  Catechism  was  left  in  the 
hands   of  the   printer,   to  be   forwarded   afterwards. 

When  they  arrived  in  Fiji  as  much  time  as 
possible  was  spent  in  the  translation  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, and,  after  a  few  months'  labour,  part  of 
St.  Matthew's  Gospel  was  sent  on  to  Tonga  to  be 
printed.  As  the  work  in  Fiji  extended,  great  need 
of  more  help  in  this  direction  was  felt  to  be 
absolutely  necessary,  and  application  was  made  to 
England  for  a  printing-press,  as  well  as  for  more 
missionaries. 

The  press  was  sent  out  in  1838,  with  the  mission 
party  of  which  Mr.  Calvert  formed  one,  who,  as  we 
have  already  seen,  possessed  a  thorough  knowledge 
of  printing  and  bookbinding.  By  the  time  the 
press  was  in  working  order,  Messrs.  Cross  and 
Cargill  had  translated  the  first  Wesleyan  Catechism 
and  the  Gospel  of  St.  Mark,  so  that  no  time  was 
lost  in  printing  them. 

The  Fijians,  as  may  be  supposed,  marvelled  much 
at  the  working  of  this  wonderful  machine.  The 
heathen  at  once  declared  it  to  be  a  god,  and 
certainly  its  power  was  infinitely  beyond  that  of 
the  gods  they  worshipped,  and  the  influence  of  its 
productions  was  a  mighty  adjunct  to  the  prayerful 
toil  of  the   missionary,  assisting   him    in    delivering 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  131 

the  inhabitants  of  these  beautiful  islands  from  the 
gloom  of  sin  and  ignorance  which  so  terribly  en- 
shrouded them. 

Mr.  Cargill,  who  had  now  acquired  a  good 
knowledge  of  the  Fijian  language,  was  chiefly 
engaged  in  translating,  while  Mr.  Calvert  and 
Mr.  Jaggar  worked  the  press,  at  the  same  time 
learning  all  they  could  of  the  new  tongue  from 
intercourse  with  the  natives,  and  supplementing  this 
with  the  instruction  they  could  get  from  Mr.  Cargill. 
Soon  a  Vocabulary  and  Grammar  in  the  Lakemban 
dialect  were  ready  for  use  among  the  new  missionaries, 
which  proved  a  great  help  to  them. 

In  July,  1839,  the  printing-press  was  rerhoved  to 
Rewa,  and  Mr.  Calvert  was  left  alone  at  Lakemba, 
with  that  large  circuit  under  his  care.  At  Rewa 
printing  was  vigorously  carried  on,  being  greatly 
assisted  by  a  grant  of  fifty  reams  of  paper  from 
the  British  and   Foreign  Bible   Society. 

Considerable  difficulty  now  presented  itself  to  the 
missionaries  in  their  translating  work,  arising  from 
the  numerous  dialects  spoken  by  the  people  on  the 
various  islands.  In  some  cases  these  differences 
were  small,  in  others  of  much  more  importance.  At 
first  it  was  decided  that  each  missionary  should 
translate  the  New  Testament  into  the  several 
dialects  spoken  by  the  people  among  whom  they 
laboured.  After  a  time,  however,  this  was  seen  to 
be  a  very  difficult  process,  seeing  that  twelve  dis- 
tinct versions  of  the  Bible  would  thus  be  required. 
Hence  it  was  agreed  that  in  future  all  translations 
should  be  made  in  the  dialect  of  Bau.  This  was 
selected  for  two  reasons — first,  because  this  was  the 
purest  dialect  spoken  ;    secondly,   because    Bau   was 


132  JAMES   CALVERT. 

a  very  important  place,  and  likely  to  become  more 
so,  and  consequently  its  language  would  be  most 
widely  known. 

In  1844  the  printing  plant  had  to  be  removed 
from  Rewa  to  Viwa,  on  account  of  a  war  which 
threatened  its  destruction  by  fire,  and  for  a  time  it 
was  unused.  Work  was  urgently  needed,  and  Mr. 
Hunt  generously  gave  up  a  substantial  stone  house 
which  he  had  built  at  the  cost  of  much  labour,  and 
there  the  work  was  again  commenced  with  great 
energy.  Mr.  Hunt  now  devoted  a  great  deal  of 
his  time  to  translating  the  Scriptures.  Thus  in 
1 847  a  complete  and  well-bound  New  Testament 
was  ready  to  be  put  into  the  hand  of  each  missionary 
at  their  annual  meeting,  and  a  copy  was  also  sent 
to  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  together 
with  a  request  for  further  help.  This  Society  voted 
;o300  towards  the  expense  of  printing  the  first 
edition,  which  greatly  helped  the  work,  and  a 
th'ousand  copies  were  struck  off  forthwith.  Mr. 
Hunt  then  set  to  work  upon  the  translation  of  the 
Old  Testament.  Genesis,  Exodus,  and  part  of  the 
Psalms  were  completed  when  his  labours  ended 
and  he  was  called  to  his  rest.  The  Bible  Society 
now  offered  to  print  an  edition  of  three  thousand 
copies  of  the  New  Testament  ;  and  as  Mrs.  Hunt  had 
returned  to  England,  her  knowledge  of  the  Fijian 
language  was  turned  to  account  in  assisting  to 
correct  this  edition  as  it  passed  through  the  press. 

The  thousand  copies  printed  in  Fiji  were  all  dis- 
tributed ;  and  as  it  would  be  some  time  before  the 
English  edition  would  be  ready,  and  the  demand  was 
so  urgent,  it  was  felt  necessary  to  at  once  start 
printing   another   edition  in   Fiji.      Mr.   Calvert  was 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  133 

the  only  missionary  left  there  who  understood  print- 
ing, and  he  was  removed  from  Lakemba  to  Viwa. 
But  just  when  most  needed,  God  raised  up  a  most 
efficient  helper  in  the  person  of  a  young  Frenchman 
named  Edward  Martin.  This  young  man  was  on 
board  an  American  vessel,  which  was  wrecked  in  a 
hurricane  among  the  Fiji  Islands.  He  was  of 
Protestant  parentage,  but  strongly  opposed  to  all 
Christian  doctrine.  After  the  wreck  he  went  to 
reside  among  some  white  men  at  Vanua  Levu,  and 
while  there  witnessed  the  death  of  an  old  English 
blacksmith,  who  had  lived  a  very  wicked  life.  This 
man's  last  hours  were  most  distressing,  and  his 
mental  anguish  and  terror  convinced  the  young 
Frenchman  of  his  own  need  of  preparation  for  a 
future  state.  Shortly  afterwards  he  came  to  Viwa, 
where  he  desired  to  remain.  He  did  so,  and  there 
learned  the  way  of  salvation  through  Christ,  and 
became  a  very  decided  Christian.  Being  without 
employment  Mr.  Calvert  made  use  of  him  in  the 
printing-office,  teaching  him  to  fold  printed  sheets, 
and  also  to  stitch  and  bind  books.  He  soon  showed 
such  singular  intelligence  and  aptness  for  the  work 
that  he  speedily  learnt  composing  and  presswork, 
and  ultimately  became  a  most  efficient  bookbinder 
and  printer.  His  kind  manner  with  the  natives 
gave  him  great  influence  among  them,  so  that  he 
was  always  able  to  obtain  their  help  in  his  work. 
Mr.  Martin  afterwards  became  an  evangelist,  and 
also  a  great  help  in  the  schools.  He  subsequently 
married  and  settled  in  Fiji,  and  devoted  himself 
entirely  to  the  mission  cause,  no  toil  being  too 
arduous  or  danger  too  great  for  him  to  undertake 
01    encounter  in   furtheriner  its  interests.      Thus  the 


134  JAMES  CALVERT. 

demand  for  New  Testaments  was  met  through  his 
efforts  before  the  arrival  of  the  Bible  Society's  edition. 
Mr.  Martin  worked  off  three  thousand  copies,  as 
well  as  three  thousand  portions  of  the  Scriptures. 
The  translation  of  the  Old  Testament  was  carried 
on  and  completed,  after  Mr.  Hunt's  death,  by  the 
Rev.  David  Hazlewood.  He  was  well  fitted  for  the 
work  ;  but,  like  Mr.  Hunt,  his  health  failed  shortly 
after  he  had  completed  his  translation,  and  he  had  to 
remove  to  New  South  Wales.  There,  after  revising 
his  edition,  he  died,  finishing  his  course  at  an  early 
age  ;  but  the  blessing  to  Fiji  through  his  earnest 
labours  still  follows  him,  and  will  continue  to  do  so 
as  long  as  Fiji  remains. 

This  manuscript  of  Mr.  Hazlewood's  translation 
Mr.  Calvert  brought  with  him  to  England,  and  he 
settled  at  Woodbridge,  in  Suffolk,  that  he  might  be 
near  the  Rev.  T.  W.  Meller,  who  was  to  superintend 
the  printing  of  it  for  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society,  they  having  undertaken  this  work. 

At  Woodbridge  Mrs.  Calvert  was  soon  as  diligently 
at  work  among  the  poor  and  afflicted  as  she  had  been 
in  Fiji.  Her  happiness  seemed  complete,  for  she  had 
now  all  her  children  around  her,  a  pleasure  she  had 
never  enjoyed  abroad.  Soon,  however,  an  unwelcome 
rest  was  imposed  upon  her,  occasioned  by  a  compound 
fracture  of  the  knee-cap.  During  this  affliction  she 
was  attended  by  a  doctor  who  was  in  very  delicate 
health,  and  yet  had  not  experienced  that  change  of 
heart  which  alone  could  fit  him  for  heaven.  The 
quiet,  unobtrusive  piety  displayed  by  his  patient  made 
a  deep  impression  upon  him,  and  led  him,  though 
unknown  to  her,  to  seek  the  Saviour  whose  presence 
was  the  source  of  her  constant  joy.      Shortly  before 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  133 

his  death  he  wrote  and  told  Mr.  Calvert  how  great  a 
blessing  Mrs.  Calvert's  example  had  been  to  him. 

While  Mr.  Calvert  was  still  engaged  in  his  revision 
work,  circumstances  arose  which  made  it  a  duty  for 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  to  return  to  Fiji.  One  of  the 
ablest  men  in  the  field  there  had  died,  and  five 
young  missionaries,  with  their  wives,  were  about  to 
embark.  Perhaps  the  greatest  sacrifice  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Calvert's  life  took  place  when  they  consented 
to  join  this  party.  One  by  one  their  children  had 
been  separated  from  them  during  their  former  stay 
in  Fiji,  to  be  educated  either  in  Australia  or  in 
England.  When  the  question  of  going  was  being 
discussed  in  the  home  at  Woodbridge,  it  was  the 
courageous  mother  who  first  dared  to  face  the 
anguish  that  was  coming  close  upon  them  as  .she 
solemnly  said,  "  We  must  go  back  to  Fiji."  But 
this  decision  meant  going  alone,  for  all  the  children 
must  be  left  behind.  What  it  cost  these  loving 
parents  God  only  knows  ;  but  feeling  the  call  to 
be  from  Him,  they  bravely  resigned  those  who 
were  dearer  to  them  than  their  own  lives,  and  again 
set  out  to  do  His  work. 

Arriving  at  Fiji,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  settled  at 
Levuka,  on  the  island  of  Ovalau,  where  they  found 
their  work  among  the  white  population  as  well  as  the 
natives.  This  town  consists  only  of  a  very  narrow 
strip  of  land  on  the  edge  of  the  sea,  backed  by  steep 
hills  which  reach  over  two  thousand  feet  high. 
There  were  no  good  roads,  so  that  all  travelling 
inland  had  to  be  done  on  foot,  over  paths  of  the 
roughest  description.  The  spread  of  Christianity 
had  made  it  possible  for  white  traders  to  settle  in 
Fiji ;   and  as   Levuka  possesses   a  splendid    natural 


1.^6 


JAMES  CALVERT. 


harbour,  it  soon  became  a  centre  for  commerce. 
Here,  in  the  lagoon  of  calm  water  which  surrounds 
the  island,  vessels  of  all  sizes  can  pass  to  and  fro  in 
perfect  safety,  out  of  the  reach  of  the  angry  waves 
which  dash  with  tremendous  fury  on  the  other  side  of 
the  reef.  Large  vessels  which  traffic  between  Germany 
and  these  islands,  smaller  schooners  from  Australia  and 
New  Zealand,  as  well  as  numberless  canoes,  which,  in 
many  cases,  can  pass  within  shelter  of  the  lagoon  from 


one  island  to  another,  delight  the  eye  as  they  move 
before  the  breeze  in  the  golden  sunshine. 

In  this  new  field  Mrs.  Calvert  set  to  work  with  the 
same  earnest  devotion  that  had  characterized  all  her 
previous  career.  The  mission-house  became  the  re- 
sort of  all  classes  ;  naval  officers  from  France  and 
America,  as  well  as  from  England,  scientific  travellers 
and  others,  came  within  reach  of  its  hospitality,  and 
were  inflluenced  for  good.  "  She  made  me  think  of 
my  mother,  and  her  kind  words  and  good  cup  of  tea 
brought  back  home  to  me,"  said  a  rough  sailor,  with 
tears  in  his  eyes. 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  137 

The  young  missionaries  and  their  wives  who  came 
out  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  were  the  subjects  of 
her  tender  care.  In  her  they  found  a  helpful  sym- 
pathizer in  all  their  troubles,  especially  in  times  of 
sickness,  when  Mrs.  Calvert  would  undertake  long 
journeys,  often  in  an  open  boat,  in  order  to  minister 
to  their  necessities.  Among  the  native  and  white 
population  she  carried  on  her  mission  of  mercy, 
both  in  teaching  and   in  nursing  the  sick,  an  art  in 


MODERN    LEVUKA. 


which  Mrs.  Calvert  excelled,  and  in  which  she  in- 
structed the  natives,  who,  to-day,  are  alleviating 
pain  and  suffering  by  the  simple  remedies  she  taught 
them  to  use. 

Some  time  after  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  had  left  Fiji, 
when  a  meeting  was  being  held  in  connection  with  the 
establishment  of  a  hospital  at  Levuka,  and  a  suitable 
matron  was  to  be  chosen,  a  Roman  Catholic  priest  said, 
"  We  want  such  a  lady  as  Mrs.  Calvert.  When  she 
visited  my  people  she  did  not  ask,  'Are you  Catholic.!*' 
'Are  you  heathen  .'''  '  Are  you  Wesleyan  } '  but  'Are 
you  sick  ? '  and  '  What  can  I  do  for  you  .-' '  " 


138  JAMES   CALVERT. 

What  a  contrast  Fiji  now  presented  to  the  time 
when  Mr.  Calvert  first  landed !  Heathenism,  with 
its  cruel  practices  and  cannibal  customs,  had  wholly 
disappeared  from  many  islands  of  the  group,  and 
Christian  teachers  could  go  to  any  part,  not  only  sure 
of  meeting  with  toleration,  but  with  a  welcome.  Four 
hundred  chapels  had  been  built  ;  there  were  eleven 
ordained  native  ministers,  besides  two  hundred  and 
fifty  local  preachers,  and  thirteen  thousand  Church 
members. 

In  1865  Mr.  Calvert  again  left  Fiji,  having  ful- 
filled the  special  need  for  which  he  undertook  the 
journey,  and  upon  his  arrival  in  England  settled 
at  Bromley,  in  Kent,  as  a  supernumerary  minister. 
Here  many  demands  were  made  upon  his  time  and 
energy.  Besides  preaching,  his  voice  was  frequently 
heard  up  and  down  the  country,  advocating  the  claims 
of  missions  or  of  the  Bible  Society  ;  and  he  still 
rendered  valuable  service  to  Fiji  by  preparing  books, 
school  apparatus,  and  other  requisites  for  the  work. 

Six  years  were  spent  in  this  way,  when  another 
great  change  came  which  led  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  to 
place  themselves  at  the  disposal  of  the  Missionary 
Society  for  foreign  service.  Special  help  was  needed 
at  the  South  African  diamond-fields,  and  they  con- 
sented to  accept  the  appointment  and  serve  there. 
Leaving  England  in  October,  1872,  they  reached 
Bloemfontein  just  before  Christmas  ;  then  followed  a 
waggon  journey  to  Kimberley,  where  they  resided  for 
two  years.  Here  many  grave  difficulties  had  to  be 
encountered,  which  made  Mr.  Calvert's  former  experi- 
ences in  Church  government  invaluable,  and  enabled 
him  to  leave  the  Church  in  a  state  of  order  and 
prosperity. 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  139 

Subsequent  scenes  of  labour  in  Africa  were  Potchef- 
stroom,  in  the  Transvaal,  and  at  Pietermaritzburg  and 
Durban,  in  Natal,  and  afterwards  at  Kimberley  again. 

Mrs.  Calvert's  health  had  been  showing  signs  of 
decay  for  some  time,  and  none  of  the  many  changes 
of  climate  and  scene  which  she  had  experienced  of 
late,  did  her  any  permanent  good  ;  it  was  now  so 
serious  as  to  lead  them  to  decide  upon  a  speedy 
return  to  England.  Before  this  took  place  Mr. 
Calvert's  friends  in  South  Africa  presented  him  with 
a  very  practical  acknowledgment  of  his  work  among 
them.  The  natives  raised  ;o33,  and  the  white  folk 
two  hundred  and  fifty  guineas,  which  they  presented 
to  Mr.  Calvert  with  an  address,  in  token  of  their 
gratitude  for  the  services  he  had  rendered  them. 

Early  in  1881  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  left  Africa 
for  England,  and  settled  at  Torquay.  At  first  Mrs. 
Calvert's  health  seemed  benefited  by  the  change  to 
her  native  land,  but  the  good  effect  was  very  transi- 
tory, and  gradually  her  strength  declined,  and  the 
worst  fears  were  entertained.  Through  her  last  illness 
she  exhibited  the  same  cheerful  fortitude  which  had 
characterized  all  her  former  sufferings  and  privations. 

Early  in  the  January  following  the  summons  came, 
when,  with  the  words,  "  Precious  Jesus,  take  me  to 
Thyself,"  upon  her  lips,  she  passed  to  her  reward  in 
the  skies. 

In  the  succeeding  May,  when  the  Wesleyan 
Missionary  Society  were  making  a  special  effort 
to  clear  off  a  debt  which  had  been  contracted, 
Mr.  Calvert,  with  his  usual  devotion  to  missions, 
laid  the  whole  of  the  sum  presented  to  him  before 
leaving  Africa  at  the  disposal  of  the  committee,  in 
memorv  of  his  beloved  wife. 


140 


JAMES   CALVERT. 


In  1885  the  Jubilee  of  Christianity  was  to  be 
celebrated  in  Fiji.  Mr.  Calvert  had  now  reached 
the  age  of  seventy-two,  but  he  was  still  hale,  showing 
no  sign  of  decay  from  the  many  changes,  frequent 
suffering,  and  exacting  toils  to  which  his  long 
missionary  career  had  subjected  him.      His  love  for 


From  Photo.  by\ 


MARY   CALVERT. 


[7".  C  Tiirmr. 


Fiji  had  not  diminished  with  advancing  years  ;  his 
warmest  affections  were  there,  and  he  became  pos- 
sessed with  an  ardent  longing  to  see  his  beloved 
people  again,  and  take  part  with  them  in  rejoicing 
over  the  triumphs  of  the  Gospel  during  these  fifty 
years.  Accordingly,  the  ever  active  though  veteran 
toiler  set  out  alone  on  a  voyage  round  the  world, 
and  spent  forty  happy  days  in  Fiji,  where  he  took 


From  Photo,  by  T.  C.  Tumer.'\ 


'/l^    J^^^ 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  143 

a  prominent  part  in  many  services,  being  glad  to 
witness  the  progress  made  in  every  branch  of  mission 
work,  and  the  general  prosperity  and  stability  of  the 
people  in  spiritual  matters. 

Referring  to  this  visit,  Mr.  Calvert  remarks — • 

"  The  latest  statistics  to  hand  show  extraordinary 
results  of  Christian  work  ;  and  it  is  remarkable  that 
where  there  was  not  a  single  Christian  in  Fiji  in 
1835?  when  the  mission  commenced,  in  1885,  when 
the  Jubilee  was  celebrated,  there  was  not  an  avowed 
heathen  left  in  all  the  large  group  of  eighty  inhabited 
islands.  The  returns  show  that  in  1885  there  were 
1,322  churches  and  other  preaching-places,  10  white 
missionaries,  65  native  ministers,  41  catechists,  1,016 
head  teachers  and  preachers,  1889  local-preachers 
28,147  fully  accredited  Church  members,  4,112  on 
trial  for  Church  membership,  3,206,  class-leaders, 
3,069  catechumens,  18,24  schools,  TQ^!^  scholars, 
and  104,585  attendants  on  public  worship,  out  of  a 
population  of  110,000. 

"  To-day  cannibalism,  widow-strangling,  and  in- 
fanticide are  unheard-of  cruelties.  And  the  vitality 
of  the  work  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  the  oversight 
of  all  the  Church  in  Fiji  is  undertaken  by  the 
Australian  Wesleyan  Conference,  which  supplies 
heartily  devoted  white  missionaries,  who  work  side 
by  side  with  ordained  native  ministers  and  preachers. 
The  Fijian  Church  is  likewise  continually  sending 
native  missionaries  to  other  distant  islands,  to 
preach  Christ  in  other  tongues.  This  many  of  them 
do  successfully,  not  counting  their  lives  dear  unto 
them  that  they  may  preach  the  Gospel." 

We  may  also  here  insert  Mr.  Calvert's  own 
account    of   his    work    in    Fiji,    as    related    by   him 


144  JAMES  CALVERT. 

in  a  very  interesting  speech  delivered  in  the  City 
Road  Wesleyan  Chapel,  at  one  of  the  Wesleyan 
Missionary   Society's   gatherings  : — 

"  I  am  deeply  grateful  to  Almighty  God  for  having 
guided  me  to  foreign  mission  service,  and  especially 
that  He  sent  me  to  Fiji,  and  for  the  help,  and  blessing, 
and  success  He  has  granted  to  us. 

"  We  had  no  night  of  toil.  God  was  with  us  from 
the  beginning,  and  all  along,  even  to  the  present  time, 
and  He  has  ever  confirmed  His  Word  with  signs 
following.  Multitudes  have  been  in  the  past — and, 
thank  God,  still  are  now — convinced  of  sin  by  the 
Word  and  Spirit  of  God.  They  bitterly  repented  of 
their  misdoings  and  transgressions,  sought  mercy  and 
forgiveness  with  all  earnestness  and  perseverance ; 
and  when  they  were  saved  by  grace,  through  faith  in 
Jesus,  many  were  remarkably  clear  in  their  enjoyment 
of  the  Divine  favour,  and  rejoiced  greatly  in  their 
Saviour  and  Lord.  These  converts  were  whole- 
hearted, and  very  true  and  faithful.  Their  thorough 
change  of  heart,  wrought  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  was 
manifest  to  all.  They  became  living  epistles,  read, 
and  known,  and  felt  by  all  who  knew  them.  It  is  a 
grand  thing  anywhere  to  have  persons  pardoned, 
renewed,  sanctified,  made  new  creatures  in  Christ 
Jesus — old  things  passed  away,  and  all  things  be- 
come new  !  This  personal  Christian  experience 
told  amazingly  among  the  dark  and  simple-minded 
Fijians — and  it  tells  everywhere — and  many  felt  con- 
vinced that  the  religion  of  Christ  was  a  real  power 
and  excellence,  and  greatly  to  be  desired. 

"And  as  soon  as  any  were  converted  and  gained 
spiritual  life  in  their  souls,  they  were  very  earnest  in 
prayer  and  direct  effort  for  the  salvation  of  others. 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  145 

Baptized  with  the  Holy  Spirit,  they  at  once  began 
to  speak  as  the  Spirit  gave  them  utterance.  We  had 
several  extensive  and  blessed  revivals,  such  as  have 
been  in  many  parts  of  the  world  since  the  Spirit  was 
poured  out  on  the  day  of  Pentecost.  These  showers 
of  blessing  told  much  upon  our  work.  And  a  grand 
work  of  God,  exceeding  the  utmost  hopes  of  the  most 
sanguine,  has  been  wrought  upon  that  long-neglected 
and  deeply  degraded  cannibal  race.  This  work  is  so 
real,  deep,  abiding,  and  continued,  that  those  who 
witness  it  cannot  gainsay  the  good  done,  but  cheerfully 
and  heartily  confess  that  God  has  really  done  great 
things.  Miss  Gordon-Cumming,  a  member  of  the 
Church  of  England,  resided  two  years  in  Fiji,  and 
thoroughly  examined  the  work.  She  gives  the 
strongest  testimony  in  favour  of  mission  work.  And 
Baron  de  Hubner,  a  German  scientist  and  Roman 
Catholic,  who  has  been  three  times  round  the  world 
wath  his  eyes  open,  and  very  observant,  said  a  marvel- 
lous change  had  been  wrought,  which  no  honest  man 
could  deny,  and  he  reverently  ascribed  the  blessed 
work  on  the  hearts  and  lives  of  multitudes  as  the 
work  of  the  Holy  Spirit  alone. 

"The  glorious  Gospel  of  the  blessed  God,  pro- 
claimed in  a  straightforward  and  earnest  way,  has 
done  its  old  work.  The  Spirit  accompanied  the  truth 
with  His  convincing  and  saving  power,  and  the  re- 
sults on  a  grand  scale  are  extraordinary.  Abominable 
and  degrading  superstitions  are  removed.  Tens 
of  thousands  of  saved  Fijians  are  now  with  their 
Saviour,  numbered  with  John  Hunt,  Richard  Burdsall 
Lyth,  Joele  Bulu  the  Tongan,  my  good  wife,  and  all 
God's  saints  in  glory  everlasting.  Some  of  these  bore 
well  fierce  persecutions,  severe  trials,  the  loss  of  all 

lo 


146  JAMES   CALVER2. 

things,  and  martyrdom.  Now  marriage  is  sacred, 
the  Sabbath  sacredly  kept,  family  worship  regularly 
conducted,  schools  everywhere  established,  law  and 
good  government  firmly  laid,  and  spiritual  Churches 
formed  and  prosperous. 

"  The  language  has  been  reduced  to  written  form, 
and  made  one,  doing  away  with  the  plague  of  many 
dialects.  An  excellent  grammar  and  dictionaries  have 
been  printed — one  edition  at  the  Mission  Press  in 
Fiji,  and  one  in  England.  Two  editions  of  the  New 
Testament  and  part  of  the  Old,  with  innumerable 
portions  of  the  Scriptures,  were  also  printed  in  Fiji. 
And  8,050  copies  of  the  Bible  in  two  editions  and 
over  50,000  of  the  New  Testament  have  been  printed 
and  bound  by  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society, 
and  these  have  been  supplied  to,  and  purchased  by, 
the  converts.  Immense  numbers  of  Catechisms  with 
Scripture  proofs,  a  large  edition  of  Bunyan's  "Pilgrim's 
Progress,"  and  three  editions  of  an  invaluable  system 
of  Christian  Theology,  prepared  by  the  eminent 
John  Hunt,  when  his  mind  and  heart  were  in  their 
ripest  condition,  and  his  knowledge  of  the  language 
was  well  matured,  have  been  and  are  widely  cir- 
culated, and  very  profitably  used. 

"  From  the  beginning  God  gave  just  the  right 
stamp  of  men,  with  the  needed  qualifications,  to 
commence  and  carry  on  the  work.  A  printer,  doctor, 
teacher,  builder,  translator,  a  man  specially  qualified 
to  prepare  an  admirable  grammar  and  dictionaries — 
all  hard-working  men,  who  stuck  to  it  all  day  long  and 
every  day  wherever  they  were.  It  was  more  than  their 
meat  and  drink  to  do  the  will  of  Him  that  sent  them. 
They  adapted  themselves  to  the  climate  and  to  the 
utter  degradation  and  abominations  which  prevailed 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  147 

everywhere,  and  all  cheerfully  roughed  it.  The  work 
from  the  beginning  has  been  mainly  done  by  native 
teachers  and    preachers,    of   whom    there    are    now 

2,958. 

"After  an  absence  of  twenty-one  years,  I  have  just 
had  the  opportunity  and  privilege  of  a  visit  to  the 
place  where  the  best  years  of  my  life  were  spent. 
Commerce  I  found  sadly  depressed,  and  the  manu- 
facture of  sugar  not  remunerative  ;  and  I  was  sorry 
to  learn  that,  beyond  the  somewhat  heavy  taxes,  the 
chiefs  who  occupy  position  under  the  English  Govern- 
ment are  still  allowed  to  exact  food,  and  money, 
and  property  from  the  people.  But  my  heart  was 
greatly  gladdened  by  the  excellent  state  of  God's 
work  throughout  the  group.  I  rejoiced  to  find  that  in 
one  circuit  500  persons  had  during  the  year  asked  to 
be  allowed  to  meet  in  class,  desiring  to  flee  from  the 
wrath  to  come  and  gain  salvation.  New  conversions 
were  taking  place,  and  God's  work  was  deepened  in 
the  hearts  of  His  people.  Great  steadfastness,  earnest- 
ness, and  constancy  were  manifest.  The  devoted 
chairman  (Rev.  F.  Langham)  and  his  excellent  wife, 
who  have  been  twenty- eight  years  hard  at  work,  are 
likely  to  serve  faithfully  for  years  to  come.  In  his 
circuit,  in  a  population  all  told  of  11,508  persons, 
981^  per  cent,  attend  our  worship;  and  throughout 
Fiji  90  per  cent,  of  all  worship  with  us.  So  that  Fiji 
is  a  nation  of  Methodists.  I  was  greatly  comforted 
by  the  excellent  spirit  and  zeal  of  the  young  mission- 
aries from  the  colonies  who  have  entered  into  our 
labours,  and  are  earnestly  carrying  on  the  work. 

"  I  was  glad  that  special  attention  is  given  to  the 
education  and  training  of  native  agents,  on  whom  so 
much  depends  in  this  extensive  work,  considerable 


148  JAMES   CALVERT. 

numbers  of  whom  are  constantly  required.  Institutions 
for  this  important  branch  of  our  service  are  diligently 
worked  by  each  missionary  in  every  circuit,  and  also 
by  the  native  ministers,  and  by  some  catechists  in 
the  sections  of  circuits  of  which  they  have  charge. 
The  most  promising  of  these  men,  thus  prepared  for 
the  work,  so  far  as  they  can  be  spared,  are  sent  for 
some  years  to  the  District  Institution,  over  which  is 
placed  a  missionary  and  a  native  minister  who  are 
best  qualified  for  and  adapted  to  this  special  service. 
There  are  109  fine  whole-hearted  men  of  various 
ages,  some  of  whom  have  wives,  who  are  taught  and 
trained  for  the  work  as  teachers  and  preachers.  I 
had  the  honour  and  enjoyment  of  giving  prizes 
at  the  close  of  the  session,  and  was  pleased  that 
some  of  the  wives  also  gained  prizes  for  good 
conduct,  and  for  keeping  their  husbands,  and  families, 
and  houses  in  good  order.  The  Bishop  of  Nelson, 
New  Zealand,  was  present,  and  gave  valuable  counsel 
to  the  men  and  women.  He  was  surprised  and 
gratified,  as  he  was  also  with  the  late  Thakombau's 
magnificent  chapel  and  our  work  at  Bau  ;  and  in  his 
astonishment  and  rejoicing  with  us  he  exclaimed, 
'  And  all  this  without  accessories  ! '  Mr.  Langham 
helped  the  catholic-spirited  Bishop  on  his  way, 
taking  him  from  Navuloa  to  Bau,  and  sending  him 
to  Ovalau,  twenty-five  miles,  in  the  Mission  boat, 
pulled  by  students.  I  voyaged  with  him  from  Fiji 
to  Auckland.  He  wrote  me  from  the  scene  of  the 
eruption,  and  said  he  should  rejoice,  were  he  in 
England,  to  testify  in  Exeter  Hall  of  what  he  had 
seen  of  our  work  on  his  visit.  I  heard  with  great 
satisfaction  one  of  the  students  rightly  divide  the 
Word  of  truth,  which  he  explained  and  applied.     I  was 


SUBSEQUENT  LABOURS.  149 

pleased  with  the  simple  and  cheap  dresses  of  the 
students  and  their  wives,  and  with  their  entire  spirit 
and  deportment.  They  are  very  true,  and  wholly 
devoted  to  Christ  and  His  cause,  ready  to  go  forth 
and  brave  the  terrible  hardships  and  exposures  of 
New  Guinea,  where  some  of  them  have  perished  in 
the  work  ;  but  others  are  baptized  for  the  dead,  and 
cheerfully  ready  to  fill  their  places.  There  were  also 
two  foreign  students  from  the  island  of  Rotumah, 
three  hundred  miles  to  the  north  of  Fiji.  These 
men,  by  gaining  a  knowledge  of  the  Fijian  language, 
gain  the  great  advantage  of  our  Bible  and  all  our 
other  books. 

"  What  has  been  wrought  in  Fiji  is  of  the  utmost 
intrinsic  value  on  the  behalf  of  every  saved  one,  but 
the  work  there  is  extremely  important  as  a  specimen, 
and  it  affords  hope  and  encouragement  to  pray,  and 
work,  and  give  for  the  salvation  of  the  vast  popula- 
tions of  all  China,  all  India,  all  the  Africas,  Russia, 
and  the  whole  world.  Christ  tasted  death  for  every 
man  ;  for  every  man  in  the  whole  world — 

'  Christ  has  for  all  a  ransom  paid, 
For  all  a  full  atonement  made.' 

And  '  to  Him  every  knee  shall  bow,  and  every 
tongue  confess  that  He  is  Lord,  to  the  glory  of  God 
the  Father.'  '  He  will  put  down  all  rule  and  all 
authority  and  power.  For  He  must  reign,  till  He 
hath  put  all  enemies  under  His  feet.' 

"  The  one  special  need  is  power  from  on  high, 
and  this  we  may  have  in  its  fulness  and  richness. 
We  live  in  the  last  time,  in  the  glorious  dispensation 
of  the  Spirit,  when  He  is  working  in  our  hearts,  and 
in  our  country,  and  among  the  nations,  beyond  what 
was  realized  in   any  age,  hastening  the  latter  days* 


150  JAMES   CALVERT. 

glory,  when  all  shall  know  Him  and  His  power  to 
save,  and  when  Christ's  kingdom  shall  be  established 
in  all  the  earth.  When  the  Spirit  descends  upon 
the  Churches,  upon  preachers  and  hearers,  the  Word 
will  be  proclaimed  with  new  power  ;  the  pious  will 
pray  in  the  Holy  Ghost ;  cheerful  workers  of  the 
right  stamp  and  liberal  givers  will  abound.  The 
rich  will  be  very  generous  under  His  constraining 
power,  and  the  poor  will  devise  liberal  things  to  the 
utmost  of  their  means.  The  busy  and  fully  employed 
will  be  ingenious,  and  find  time  and  opportunity  for 
work  in  Christ's  service.  The  love  of  Christ  will 
assuredly  constrain  them  to  do  something.  When 
the  Spirit  works  freely  and  fully  in  the  soul  every 
power  will  be  enlisted  to  render  its  quota  in  the 
blessed  service  of  Christ.  Glorious  days  are  ahead ! 
The  Lord  hasten  them!  '  Gold  shall  be  brought;' 
not  squeezed  out  of  people,  or  parted  with  reluctantly, 
but  voluntarily  and  cheerfully  surrendered  for  Christ's 
sake.  The  heart  shall  be  enlarged  ;  the  abundance 
of  the  sea  shall  be  converted  to  God,  and  the  forces 
of  the  Gentiles  shall  come  to  Him.  The  wilderness 
shall  be  a  fruitful  field,  and  the  fruitful  field  shall  be 
counted  for  a  forest.  A  little  one  shall  become 
a  thousand,  and  a  small  one  a  strong  nation,  and  the 
Lord  will  hasten  it  in  His  time.  And  there  shall  be 
great  voices  in  heaven,  saying,  '  The  kingdoms  of  this 
world  are  become  the  kingdoms  of  the  Lord,  and  ot 
His  Christ ;  and  He  shall  reign  for  ever  and  ever.'" 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


CONCLUSION. 


"  Go  ye  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations." — Matt,  xxviii.  19. 

"  I  heard  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  saying.  Whom  shall  I  send,  and 
who  will  go  for  us  ?     Then  said  I,   .   .   .  Send  me." — IsA.  vi.  8. 


LET  the  closing   chapter  of  this  review  of  Mr. 
Calvert's  work   in   Fiji,   be   the    utterances  of 
some  of  those  natives  who  have  gone  to  rest 
rejoicing  in   the   Lord. 

First  we  stand  by  the  side  of  the  dying  Thakom- 
bau,  a  day  or  two  before  his  death,  and  hear  him  say 
to  one  of  his  attendants,  "  Faith  is  a  good  thing  :  it 
is  a  great  thing,  for  it  is  by  faith  we  are  saved.  Ah ! 
salvation  is  a  great  thing,  salvation  is  the  one  thing." 
Towards  the  middle  of  the  night  preceding  his 
decease  he  said,  "  We  have  not  had  prayers  yet, 
have  we  .-*  Well,  we  will  have  them  now,  and  I 
will  conduct  them,"  and  then  he  prayed  in  his 
usual  beautifully  simple  style.  The  name  of  Jesus 
was   often   on   his   lips,  and  to   those   around  him  he 


152  JAMES  CALVERT. 

would  say,  "  Be  thou  faithful  unto  death."  Once  he 
prayed,  "  Lord,  be  gracious  unto  me.  Here  I  lie,  in 
obedience  to  Thy  will.  Life  and  death  are  in  Thy 
hands.      Thou  alone  rulest." 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  day  on  which  he  died, 
he  was  heard  praying,  "  Lord,  be  gracious  to  Thy 
servant.  Help  me  this  day.  Give  me  Thy  Holy 
Spirit,  for  the  sake  of  Jesus  Thy  Son,  my  Saviour." 
His  last  audible  prayer  was,  "  Hold  me,  Jeeus  !  hold 
me,  Jesus  ;  my  faith  in  Thee  is  firm." 

The  Rev.  F.  Langham,  his  pastor,  wrote  to 
Mr.  Calvert  concerning  his  death  as  follows  :  "  He 
died  well.  It  would  have  rejoiced  your  heart  to 
have  seen  the  grand  old  warrior — for  grand  he 
certainly  did  look  as  he  lay  on  his  mat — saying  he 
trusted  in  Jesus,  his  loving  Saviour.  His  son  Timothy 
and  his  daughter  knelt  with  me  while  I  prayed  to 
the  waiting  Saviour  to  receive  the  departing  spirit. 
I  could  hardly  get  words  out,  for  we  were  all  weeping. 
We  were  thankful  that  he  ended  his  stormy  life  so 
peacefully. 

"  What  a  stir  there  must  have  been  in  the  land  of 
the  blest  when  many  who  had  heard  of  him  now 
saw  him,  and  those  who  had  preceded  him  now  met 
him  in  light  and  blessedness  !  You  may  imagine  I 
miss  the  old  man.  He  was  always  so  regular  at 
church,  and  one  of  the  best  hearers  I  ever  knew. 
And  how  appropriately  he  used  to  pray  !  with 
what  sweet  simplicity  !  You  remember  what  choice 
language  he  used.  He  had  a  fine  command  of 
Fijian  words.  It  was  always  a  treat  to  listen  to 
him,  whether  in  the  prayer- meeting,  the  class-meeting, 
or  the  love-feast. 

"  It  was  something  worth  doing  to  win  him  for 


CONCLUSION.  153 

Christ.  Thank  God  for  such  a  glorious  triumph 
of  redeeming  grace  !  And  what  a  multitude  have 
been  won  to  a  profession  of  religion,  and  brought 
to  know  the  Saviour,  through  the  knowledge  of  his 
conversion  and   his  influence  and  example." 

And  humbler  Christians  shall  give  their  testimony, 
as  they  near  the  swellings  of  Jordan.  Daniel  Kepa 
said,  "  Every  day  have  I  an  assurance  of  the  pardon 
of  my  sins.  I  know  that  if  my  life  were  to  end 
to-day  I  should  enter  upon  life  eternal  in  heaven. 
In  the  night  my  soul  is  full  of  peace,  for  I  have 
found  the  love  of  God,  and  He  helped  me.  Plain 
as  noonday  is  it  to  me  that  my  soul  is  saved,  there- 
fore I  fear  not  to  die  ;  for  I  know  that  when  my 
soul  is  parted  from  my  body  I  shall  live  for  ever 
with  my  God,  through  Jesus  Christ  my  Lord.  .  .  . 
I  am  ready  to  be  gone  to-day.  This  Sabbath  shall 
I  spend  in  heaven.  Let  your  words  be  few.  My 
Lord  is  here,  and  calls  me  away.  Look  !  behold  the 
Lord  ! " 

And  thus  Reuben  of  Ono  died.  His  closing 
words  were,  "  Weep  not  for  me  :  as  for  me,  I  live. 
The  Lord  and  His  angels  are  hastening  to  take  me 
with  Him.  If  you  love  me  hold  fast  to  the 
Lotu.  Be  earnest  in  religion.  This  very  day  shall 
I  look  with  mine  eyes  upon  the  things  which 
I  believed,  though  I  saw  not.  Now  am  I  going  to 
possess  them  all.  .  .  .  Do  you  not  see  Him  ? 
Look  !  the  house  is  full  of  angels !  My  Saviour 
is  hastening  me  away.  Farewell !  Great  is  my 
love  to  you." 

Joele  Bulu  was  a  remarkable  trophy  of  Divine  grace. 
He  was  born  at  Vavau,  in  the  Friendly  Islands.  On 
first  hearing  the  missionary  he  resisted  the  truth,  but 


154  JAMES   CALVERT. 

afterwards,  when  he  heard  the  servant  of  God  give 
his  own  experience  of  repentance,  he  said,  "  We 
are  Hke  two  canoes  saiHng  bow  and  bow,  neither 
being  swifter  nor  slower  than  the  other,"  When 
the  missionary  told  of  his  faith  in  Christ,  Joele  cried 
out,  "  My  mast  is  broken  ;  my  sail  is  blown  away  : 
He  is  gone  clear  out  of  sight,  and  I  am  left  here 
drifting  helplessly  over  the  waves."  Shortly  after- 
wards his  eyes  were  opened,  and  he  saw  the  way  of 
salvation. 

This  man  became  a  teacher  in  Fiji,  and  afterwards 
as  an  ordained  minister  he  laboured  faithfully  and 
efficiently,  with  extraordinary  success,  in  different 
parts  of  the  islands,  for  nearly  forty  years.  Our 
readers  will  gain  some  idea  of  his  work  from  a 
letter  written  by  him  to  the  missionaries  while  he 
was  in   charge  at  Ono  : — 

"  The  work  of  God  prospers  at  Ono.  The  people 
are  in  earnest.  I  also  endeavour  to  be  in  earnest. 
I  visit  the  towns  and  from  house  to  house.  I  question 
them,  instruct  them,  and  pray  with  them,  and  we  are 
at  rest  in  the  love  of  God,  We  have  had  a  profit- 
able infant-school  feast.  I  endeavour  to  teach  the 
youths  the  meaning  of  Holy  Scripture.  At  one 
love-feast  at  Ndoi  the  Holy  Spirit  wrought  mightily 
in  our  hearts,  and  many  stated  their  enjoyment  of 
the  Divine  favour.  In  one  week  I  go  to  Waini, 
and  meet  classes  ;  one  week  to  Ndoi,  and  meet  the 
classes  ;  one  week  at  Matokana,  and  one  week  at 
Ono  Levu  ;  and  this  I  shall  attend  to  quarterly. 
Please  write  to  me,  and  tell  me  what  I  must  do  ;  for 
there  is  no  missionary  near  to  whom  I  can  apply  for 
information  as  to  how  I  shall  act  in  some  cases. 
Remember   me    in    your   prayers,  that    I    may  have 


CONCLUSION.  155 

help,  and  that  my  mind  may  be  enlightened  to 
know  what  is  right  for  me  to  do  in  the  Church 
at  Ono." 

Miss  Gordon-Cumming  thus  speaks  of  this  devoted 
native  minister  :  — 

"  The  first  to  welcome  us  on  our  landing  (at  Bau) 
was  the  native  minister,  Joeli  Mbulu,  a  fine  old 
Tongan  chief.  His  features  are  beautiful,  his  colour 
clear  olive,  and  he  has  grey  hair,  and  a  long,  silky, 
grey  beard.  He  is  just  my  ideal  of  what  Abraham 
must  have  been,  and  would  be  worth  a  fortune  to 
an  artist  as  a  patriarchal  study.  These  men  (Ton- 
gans)  proved  invaluable  helpers.  Better  pioneers 
could  not  have  been  desired.  Men  of  strong,  ener- 
getic character  and  determination,  keenly  intelli- 
gent, physically  superior  to  the  average  Fijian, 
and  therefore  commanding  their  respect,  they  had 
always  taken  the  lead  wherever  they  went  ;  and  as 
in  their  heathen  days  they  had  been  foremost  in 
reckless  evil,  they  now  threw  their  whole  influence 
into  the  scale  of  good.  Foremost  among  these  was 
Joele  Bulu,  a  man  whose  faith  is  an  intense  reality. 
I  have  rarely  met  any  man  so  perfectly  simple  or  so 
unmistakably  in  earnest.  He  proved  himself  so 
thoroughly  worthy  of  confidence  that  in  due  time  he 
was  ordained  a  native  minister,  and  sent  to  take 
charge  of  the  remote  cluster  of  isles  of  which  Ono  is 
the  principal." 

"  Late  as  it  was,  on  our  return  we  went  to  see 
dear  old  Joele  Mbulu,  the  noble  old  Tongan  minister 
of  wkom  I  have  often  spoken  to  you.  Alas  !  his 
work  is  well-nigh  finished.  He  is  greatly  changed 
this  week — wasted  to  a  shadow  ;  but  his  face  is 
perhaps  more  beautiful  than  ever,  from   its  sweetness 


156  JAMES   CALVERT. 

of  expression,  and  the  bright  look  which  at  times 
lights  it  up,  just  like  some  grand  old  apostle  ncaring 
his  rest.  .  .  .  He  has  been  a  Christian  teacher  in 
Fiji  from  1838,  amid  noise  and  the  tumult  of  war, 
and  in  the  thick  of  all  the  devilry  of  cannibalism. 
He  has  been  Thakombau's  special  teacher,  and  many 
a  difficult  day  he  has  had  with  him  and  all  his  hand- 
some, strong-willed  sons  and  daughters.  They  are 
all  very  much  attached  to  him,  and  some  of  them 
are  generally  with  him  now,  fanning  or  just  watching 
beside  him." 

"  Lady  Gordon  had  sent  a  parcel  of  jujubes  and 
acid  drops  for  dear  old  Jocle,  which  we  took  to  him. 
His  noble  face  lighted  up  as  we  entered,  and  he 
greeted  us,  as  was  his  wont,  with  holy  and  loving 
words.  He  was  perfectly  calm,  and  the  grand, 
steadfast  mind  clear  as  ever.  But  it  is  evident  that 
he  is  nearing  his  rest." 

"  Last  night  there  were  great  wailing  and  lamen- 
tation in  Bau,  for  soon  after  midnight  Joele  passed 
away,  and  died  nobly,  as  he  had  lived.  He  was 
quite  conscious  to  the  very  last,  and  the  expression 
of  the  grand  old  face  was  simply  beautiful — so 
radiant,  as  of  one  without  a  shadow  of  doubt  con- 
cerning the  home  he  was  so  near.  No  man  ever 
earned  better  the  right  to  say,  *  I  have  fought  a  good 
fight,  I  have  kept  the  faith,'  nor  ever  was  more 
truly  humble.  If  ever  the  crown  of  righteousness  is 
awarded  by  a  righteous  Judge  to  His  true  and  faith- 
ful servants,  assuredly  Joele  will  not  fail  to  stand  in 
that  blessed  company. 

"  The  king  and  all  his  family  mourn  sorely,  for 
Joele  has  ever  been  their  true  and  faithful  friend 
and  minister  ;  and  many  a  time  has  he  pleaded  with 


CONCLUSION.  157 

the  old  chief,  in  the  long  years  ere  he  could  be 
brought  to  abandon  the  vile  customs  of  heathenism. 
The  place  of  burial  was  a  beautiful  site,  near  an  old 
church,  on  the  neighbouring  isle  of  Viwa.  The 
funeral  procession  was  a  very  touching  one.  One 
large  canoe  carried  the  dead  and  the  chief  mourners. 
The  old  king  .  .  .  and  nearly  all  the  people  of  Bau, 
and  from  many  villages,  came  in  canoes  and  boats, 
making  a  very  great  procession.  Part  of  our 
beautiful  funeral  service  was  repeated,  in  the  rich 
Fijian  tongue  (which  to  my  ears  always  resembles 
the  Italian)  ;  and  then  Joele  was  laid  beside  his 
old  friend  and  teacher,  the  Rev.  John  Hunt,  with 
whom  he  had  shared  many  an  anxious  day,  and  who 
died  here  in  1848,  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-six." 

Thus  we  see  what  great  things  the  Lord  has 
accomplished  through  His  servants  among  the 
heathen  ;  and  yet  how  much  still  remains  to  be 
done  !  The  cry  continues  for  more  workers  to  be 
sent  into  the  vast  vineyard  of  the  world,  which 
has  yet  so  many  dark  corners  unlighted  by  the 
lamp  of  the  Gospel.  The  need  is  great  thousands 
of  Christian  missionaries  are  absolutely  wanted,  both 
men  and  women  ;  not  necessarily  of  high  culture, 
but  of  simple  faith  and  self-denying  love. 

Many  of  our  readers  may  have  seen  the  Mis- 
sionary Chart,  reprinted  on  the  next  page,  without 
realizing  the  pressing  need  for  workers  it  points  out. 
A  very  small  piece  of  white  is  shown  at  the  top, 
representing  Protestants,  which  small  portion  is  made 
up  by  including  all  sorts  of  nominal  Christians,  but 
below  this  the  chart  darkens  until  it  merges  into  the 
blackness  of  utter  heathenism. 


'58 


JAMES   CALVERT. 


Our  Lord's  last  command  to  His  disciples  was, 
"  Go  ye,  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations."  Miss 
F.  R.  Havergal  says,  " '  Go '  does  not  mean  send  ; 
'  Go  '  does  not  mean  pray  ;  '  Go  '  means  Go,  simply 
and  literally." 


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We  lately  heard  a  clergyman,  who  had  given  up 
a  lucrative  living  in  England  for  a  mere  subsistence 
in  China,  say,  "  Let  us  not  ask  ourselves  whether 
we  ought  to  go  and  preach  Christ  to  the  heathen, 
but  rather  whether  we  ought  to  stay  at  home.  It 
has  been  said  that  a  man's  ambition  is  for  his 
own   advancement,  while  a  woman's  is  for   that  of 


CONCLUSION.  159 

her  children.  Christian  mothers,  can  there  be  a 
greater  honour  for  your  children  than  that  of  going 
among  the  heathen  as  ambassadors  for  the  King 
of  kings  ? " 

Our  task  is  done,  at  best  but  in  a  fragmentary- 
manner.  We  have  tried  to  portray  some  of  those 
features  of  the  wonderful  conquest  of  Fiji  for  Christ 
which  have  taken  place  within  the  lifetime  of 
James  Calvert.  He,  after  seven  years  of  loneliness, 
married  the  widow  of  the  Rev.  Andrew  Kessen, 
LL.D.,  and  now,  in  his  quiet  and  happy  home  at 
Hastings,  still  labours  for  his  beloved  Fiji,  supplying 
Scriptures  and  many  other  books,  and  frequently 
advocating  the  claims  of  Foreign  Missions  and  of 
the  Bible  Society  in  various  parts  of  England. 
Unlike  many,  he  has  been  spared  to  see  the  fruit  of 
his  labours,  and  though  full  of  years,  is  still  found 
working  for  the  mission  cause  he  has  served  so 
nobly  and  so  long. 

We  close  our  sketch  with  an  extract  from  an  article 
by  the  Rev.  G.  Stringer  Rowe,  Governor  of  Head- 
ingley  College,  printed  in  the  Christian  of  August  3rd, 
1888  :  "None  who  heard  Mr.  Calvert  in  the  late 
Missionary  Conference,  as  he  gave  his  short,  com- 
pressed, simple  statement  of  the  results  of  Christianity 
in  Fiji,  but  must  have  been  profoundly  impressed 
thereby.  .  .  .  This  vast  change,  which  no  philosophy 
ignoring  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost  attending  the 
preached  Gospel  of  Christ  can  by  any  means  explain, 
has  come  to  pass  within  the  lifetime,  and  much  of  it 
under  the  personal  observation,  of  James  Calvert, 
who  is  still  among  us,  enjoying  the  reverent  love  of 
all  who  know  him,  rejoicing  to  bear  daily  witness 
that  the  grace  of  God,  which,  fifty-seven  years  ago. 


i6o  JAMES  CALVERT. 

wrought  a  new  life  in  him  among  the  Yorkshire 
Wolds,  is  still  all-sufficient,  and  ascribing  all  power 
and  all  praise  to  Him  who  then  washed  him  from 
his  sins  in  His  own  blood." 

"  Fling  out  the  banner !  let  it  float 

Skyward  and  seaward,  high  and  wide  ; 
The  sun  shall  light  its  shining  folds, 
The  Cross  on  which  the  Saviour  died. 

"  Fling  out  the  banner  !  angels  bend 
In  anxious  silence  o'er  the  sign, 
And  vainly  seek  to  comprehend 
The  wonder  of  the  Love  Divine. 

"  Fling  out  the  banner !  heathen  lands 
Shall  see  from  far  the  glorious  sight, 
And  nations,  crowding  to  be  born, 
Baptize  their  spirits  in  its  light. 

"  Fling  out  the  banner!  sin-sick  souls, 
That  sink  and  perish  in  the  strife, 
Shall  touch  in  faith  its  radiant  hem, 
And  spring  immortal  into  life. 

"  Fling  out  the  banner  !  let  it  float 

Skyward  and  seaward,  high  and  wide 
Our  glory,  only  in  the  Cross  ; 
Our  only  hope,  the  Crucified  ! 

"  Fling  out  the  banner  !  wide  and  high, 
Seaward  and  skyward,  let  it  shine  : 
Nor  skill,  nor  might,  nor  merit  ours  ; 
We  conquer  only  in  that  sign." 


THE    END. 


Printed  by  Hazell,  Watson,  &  Viney,  Ld.,  London  and  Aylesbury. 


BW9068  .V54 

James  Calvert :  or,  From  dark  to  dawn  in 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00039  7986 


